The Sensitives
by Moondust Glow
Summary: We were called Sensitives. People whose senses were more heightened by paranormal phenomena. There were few of us and when we were found, our senses were used to capture the creatures of the night and put them to eternal rest. I was a particularly sensitive Sensitive, if that makes sense. So when I saw him. I knew immediately what he was. Vampire. Starts at S1 Damon/OC.
1. Chapter 1

So this is the extremely revamped version of Dance for Me. The characters are completely different as is the plot but after reading my old version, I decided to scrap that plot and start fresh. Hope you guys enjoy.

 _ **Disclaimer**_ : I do not own anything pertaining to _The Vampire Diaries_. That all belongs to its rightful owner. I do own Charlotte and Alistair.

I decided there was no point. No matter how much I argued, whined, begged, or bargained, the result would remain the same...my hair was not going to be tamed. I came to terms with the fact that, for now, I would resemble Simba when he sang "I Just Can't Wait To Be King" and put my hairbrush, now full of silver clumps of hair, back onto the counter with a resigned sigh. Of course, my first day of junior year, my hair would decide to give the proverbial 'screw you' in the form of outrageously unmanageable curls. No amount of gel or de-frizz spray would contain the beast.

'Not like I have anyone to impress anyway,' I reminded myself. Ah, the terrors of starting at a new school suddenly weighed on my shoulders. No amount of convincing debate could keep my, er, guardian away from the wonderful town of Mystic Falls (please note sarcasm) and before I knew it we were leaving the city life of London for this lovely speck of dirt in Virginia. Wonderful idea, really.

"Lottie! You can't hide up there forever! It's already quarter after 7!" ah yes. My lovely guardian, and I use the term _guardian_ very loosely seeing as how we aren't related and he, Alistair, is more of an annoying best friend than anything, also failed to mention the fact that in order to move here he had to sell our car to get the funds for the plane tickets to Virginia. Yours truly was now faced with the horror of taking the bus as a junior (a new student to make it even worse) or getting a ride from the man who investigated the paranormal for a living.

Neither option was ideal.

It also didn't help that my face was littered with small, barely noticeable scars. Great way to start a new school year.

"I'll be down in a sec, yeah?" was my response as I scrambled for my worn leather bag, tugging at the equally worn jean jacket draped around my shoulders. Just as I was about to descend the stairs in a fit of teenage angst, the lack of warmth around my hands reminded me of my most treasured accessory.

Running back to my room, I pushed the oak door open and dug through the many drawers before finding the gloves placed in an oak chest, the lace glinting innocently in the light. I grabbed the gloves before pulling them around my thin hands, walking down the stairs at the same time.

Alistair stood at the front door wearing a white button down shirt with black slacks, a brown leather briefcase in one hand. I raised my eyes at his appearance, surprised at the professionalism.

"Al, where exactly were you employed here?" Alistair was an avid fan of the supernatural and we always lingered around areas where legends or myths were strong. To see him dressed up in a suit instead of his usual jeans and t-shirt was odd. His eyes caught the slight discoloration in my face where the healed scars etched in my skin but his face remained impassive.

"That, love, is not something you need to worry about," he quirked, gesturing towards the door. I rolled my eyes.

"You mean I was allowed to worried about the abandoned asylum filled with asbestos? Or how about that really creepy hotel room where Jack the Ripper murdered one of his victims? Or what abou-" I probably could have gone on for hours but I was cut off as Al interrupted.

"Ah right well evidently this job is much more serious than a simple stroll through abandoned buildings. Anyways, we need to get going. You have your gloves? Your necklace" He was always very fervent about my wearing of the gloves around my hands and the locket around my neck. It was a sentiment both he and I shared with equal urgency.

"Got it right here," I pointed to the pendant around my neck and the gloves around my hands, smiling as his expression softened. A sudden beeping from his watch made us both jump, ending whatever 'family' moment there was as he exclaimed how we would both be late if we didn't get a move on.

Al, lucky him, was able to find a decently priced car when we arrived in America to get us both around. The day we purchased the Kia would remain a humorous one as flashes of him struggling with the reversed seating and road arrangements became a challenge. Of course, he figured it out after a couple days but he and I both knew he would never live it down when he nearly drove into another car due to driving on the wrong side of the road. The drive was slow but as we drove through the town, I realized that with a little bit of work, I'd be able to walk to nearly every destination just fine.

"You remember what we talked about right?" Because the plane ride from London to Virginia was such a bloody long one, Al made it his very own mission to drill my head with rules I already knew. The whole flight.

"It's not like you haven't repeated them about a thousand times since we left London, how could I forget?" We made a turn down a street that looked like the center of the entire town, full with a bar/grille, city hall, post office, and courtyard.

"Just repeat them, Charlotte," Wincing, I knew Al was dead serious as he never called me by my first name otherwise. Likewise, I only addressed him as Alistair unless I was particularly annoyed with him.

"Remain on guard. Report to you if anything suspicious comes up. Keep the necklace on. Don't talk about anything paranormal. And observe everything. That about it?" All of these rules were basic procedure when we moved to a new area because of Al's 'calling'.

"And our story?" It was also procedure that we both have a story about our past living arrangements that betrayed nothing about his er, 'career'.

"We lived in London for the past two years. You worked at Wood Street Police Station in London and I attended a boarding school in the area. We moved here because we wanted to leave the city and move abroad. We are Alistair and Charlotte Morgan, siblings who moved to Mystic Falls because they had a position open with the police department that was just too damn perfect to pass up," This story was also repeated a total of ten times on the plane before I tuned him out with earbuds and _Pride and Prejudice_.

"Very good. Now-"

"Let's not also forget that the town has had reports of constant supernatural activity from werewolves to vampires over the past decade and a recent check-in by an overly obsessed man confirmed that "animal" attacks have grown within the past month," was my cheeky interruption. Al's face reddened as he sighed heavily. He really was so easy to work up.

"Now we both know that's not part of the story," was his very exasperated response.

"I know. I'm just being a bitch like always. It's just going to be annoying blending in again," was my response as silence followed before he sighed again, sounding more sympathetic than annoyed. Al pulled into a slot, putting the car in park as he turned to fully face me, crystal eyes brimmed with seriousness.

"I know it's been hard. But I think it'll be nice here. It's smaller, yes, but it's kind of quaint and special and I have no doubt that you'll make it work. We'll make it work" he said, clasping my thin shoulders in his hands. I grabbed at his suit and scoffed.

"How are we going to make this work when you are already keeping me out of everything. I'm the one with the super senses. Shouldn't I be informed?" I asked, annoyed. I hated when Al played the protective brother role and kept me in the dark.

"This time is different, Lottie. It's more serious and the town has been littered with these creatures since the mid 1800s. There's a fucking council for Christ's sake. Until I know everything, I don't want to get you involved with them. Just give me some time love," Al explained, rubbing comforting circles into my shoulders.

I nodded and looked down at the locket resting against my collarbones.

"What about, you know, _them_?" I asked, both of us knowing who 'them' was. Al exhaled shakily and squeezed my shoulders tightly, staring deeply into my wide eyes.

"Do not approach if you see one. You come home and you tell me immediately or you call I don't care when. But do not go about this by yourself. They aren't like the witches. They don't know reason nor do they really care to when a meal is in front of them. A pretty tasty meal at that. Keep that necklace on and those senses tight and be _careful_. I don't care how much experience you have. I won't lose you," he stated vehemently squeezing my shoulders again before tugging me into a hug, one I returned with equal vigor.

"I love you, Al. Please be careful. You're not as sensitive as I am," I muttered into his shoulder, the sound muffled by his jacket. He squeezed tight before letting go completely and tracing his hands over the lily white lines slightly marring my face.

"Don't worry about me. Worry about yourself and remain aware. Now I think it's just about time you get to class, yeah? I'll be here by 3. I know school ends at 2:40 so just stay in the school until I get here. Call me if anything happens," he instructed before pulling me into another hug. I grabbed my worn bag and exited the car, smiling at my best friend. I turned to leave the parking lot before Al called, "Hey, Lottie," the window rolled down so that I could hear him.

"Yeah?"

"I love you, too,"

So that's it for this chapter. I'm going to be working on this story more than the Twilight one so expect an update from this one soon as I'm having a pretty creative streak at the moment. Review if you have an ideas of your own for this story or if you wish to provide some **_constructive_ ** criticism. See you next chapter :).

Moondust Glow.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello again. So yeah, another really early chapter because of inspiration and plenty of down time to get it out. Hope everyone enjoys. :) I do use dialogue from the Pilot episode of TVD so don't mind that.

I'd like to mention that I did a bit of editing on the last chapter, keeping the importance of locket she wears still there but adding gloves, something also very important. In the previous chapter, Lottie has not taken off her necklace for any reason and instead searches for her gloves instead of the necklace before she goes downstairs. I think that was the only thing I changed but I wanted to make sure people who read the chapter from yesterday understand that I've changed something to further the plot.

Also, the story, for now, is rated M for language and language only, again for now (maybe). Just a fair warning.

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own anything in association with _The Vampire Diaries_ they all belong to their rightful owners. I do own Charlotte and Alistair though.

Enjoy.

I had originally been worrying over the supernatural conflicts I knew I would be facing in this new town as a Sensitive, but all worries over the paranormal flew out the proverbial window when I walked up to Mystic Falls High School.

The school was pretty enough with a large courtyard filled with pretty green grass, wooden benches, and tall trees, but the scenery did nothing to calm my nerves when I laid eyes on the student body walking around said campus.

Though I was the same age as these students, my mental capacity was far beyond their own due to being a Sensitive. Sensitives were just that. Sensitive. Our senses were highly tuned to those around us and our observation skills were far above any withstanding detective. We were a walking Sherlock Holmes.

Times one hundred.

Because of our heightened abilities, things such as emotions, thoughts, and just about any sensory feeling was amplified and we found it hard to be around others with extreme hormonal changes and spikes.

Which was why, as I approached hell, I was more afraid of this innocent student body than any big bad creature of the night. The school was pretty large for such a small town but the students seemed to fill it quite nicely with their small talk and community clubs. The walls were decorated with posters about said clubs and the different festivals that would take place in the coming weeks. I followed the arrows pointing to the main office and was glad the halls weren't crawling with hormonal teenagers just yet.

It was when I approached the glass door to the office that I would have given anything for those hormonal teenagers.

Because standing in the office, stood a tall male figure in a black leather jacket. I could hear the students around me murmuring about a new student but my attention was focused solely on the figure's back.

No two Sensitives had the exact same way of, well, sensing. There were categories of each type of Sensitive and each was categorized by the way they "sensed". For example, those who felt nausea when around the paranormal were called _Venter Convellere_ , or, _Convellere_ for short. Each category was then organized into different levels from one to five, five being the most sensitive and one being the least.

I was part of a group called _Animam Sanguinis_ , who received splitting headaches in the presence of the paranormal, and I was categorized as, unfortunately, level five. Because I was a level five, the power behind the headaches I received equated to that of a full blown migraine.

Lucky for me, said headaches had been...absent for some time. However, as was the norm for all Sensitives, whenever our senses picked up on the presence of a supernatural, our eyes glowed slightly, giving off a cooling sensation to our eyes.

Which was why, when I stood staring at the figure in the office, the telltale feeling of coolness in my corneas and the _slight_ feeling of pressure in my temples alerted me immediately.

Vampire.

Of course I would see a vampire right here, in school. Even more ironic, it was my first day. Not sure how to proceed, seeing how this was a _very_ public place, surrounded by teenagers no less, I did the only thing that seemed probable.

I walked right up to him. Fuck Alistair's rules.

He seemed to be talking with the secretary about his enrollment, a conversation that seemed to be heading south by the vampire's...aura? Is that what I should be calling them now? Auras? I shook my head and leaned against the door frame watching the scene unfold.

"Your records are incomplete," the dark-skinned woman, Patty, as her nametag identified, argued, "You're missing immunization records. And we do insist on past transcripts," Patty looked up and from my position, I could see the man-vampire- pulling a pair of dark sunglasses off his eyes. Knowing what he was about to do, I kept my eyes on the secretary's. As if on cue her head looked up just as the vampire began to speak.

"Please look again. I'm sure everything you need is there," was spoken in a smooth, convincing voice and Patty's eyes dilated slightly before she smiled brightly, replying, "Well, you're right. So it is".

The aura surrounding the ma-vampire- brightened slightly during the use of his compulsion but dimmed back to a lovely shade of blue as he returned the secretary's smile. Deciding it was time to approach, I walked up next to the new student, smiling brightly at him.

"You know, that's a real clever trick. You should teach me sometime," I stated, somewhat sarcastically. His face brimmed with slight panic before I lightly pushed at his shoulder.

"Oh, I'm just playing. It'll be nice to not be the only new student around. Would've been nicer if I didn't have to go through all the bloody paperwork though," I teased, watching his expression clear slightly.

"I can imagine why it would be a pain. England?" he asked, motioning towards my accent. I smiled. Okay so maybe not too psycho. He was being friendly enough. But then again there were a lot of witnesses.

"Yeah. London actually. City life to small town sewer life. Not to mention the-",

"Ahem," Both myself and the vampire next to me turned back to Patty. Ah, poor old Patty.

"Was there something you needed, dear?" She asked, fidgeting with her purple polo. I smiled again and turned back to the. You know, it's getting especially annoying to keep calling him, "the vampire".

"Right. Well it was nice to meet you…?" I offered, hoping he'd recognize the question I was asking.

"Stefan. Stefan Salvatore. And you?"

"Miss Charlotte Morgan at your service," I mock bowed. He smiled slightly and tilted his head down in response. For some reason, I could almost see him greeting women with the same exact gesture, a leather hat over slightly longer hair.

"Lovely to meet you, Charlotte." Well. He was impeccably polite for a bloodthirsty monster of the night. The woman at the desk cleared her throat again, growing impatient.

"Hope to see a fellow new student in class," I waved before turning back to the woman at the desk, feeling the heavy stare Stefan planted on the side of my face.

"I'm a new transfer from England. My name is Charlotte Morgan," I supplied, watching as she typed on her computer. I turned back to where Stefan had been standing, still seeing dust-like remnants of his baby blue aura. How odd for a vampire to have such a bright aura. Blue, the color of peace, at that.

"Ah yes, your brother called in earlier this week. It appears you have everything in the system," Patty said, printing out a form from the computer. She handed me papers, my schedule and a map, reading off the different classes.

"You'll be starting with homeroom and period 1 in room B04 with Mr. Tanner. He teaches History. The rest is self explanatory. Would you like a tour guide? The school isn't too hard to navigate but it's also different from your boarding school in England," she asked.

"That'll be just fine. Thank you. Have a nice day," I smiled at Patty and held the map in front of me. There was an **x** where the office was and B04 was just a couple doors down. Checking the clock hanging in the office, Mr. Tanner's class didn't start for another 10 minutes, so I decided to walk around the school in hopes of familiarizing myself with the building.

And it turned out that this Mystic Falls High was the cliche high school. There were druggies smoking outside, cheerleaders leaning against lockers, jocks also hanging around lockers, and each small group of friends spoke about the week's drama.

"Did you hear about the animal attack on Route 8?" one girl, a redhead, asked her friend. Actually, yes, I have heard about that attack, otherwise myself and Alistair probably wouldn't be here.

"Did you see Matt and Elena? Totally awkward. I kind of feel bad for the guy…,"

"New guy alert. Nice jacket…"

"Cheer tryouts next week. Caroline better go easy…"

"Seems like there isn't only one new student…"

"But what's with the gloves?"

"Her face…scars…"

"That hair, where the hell did she crawl out of?"

And so I decided to abandon my plans of exploring due to a seemingly very popular hobby in Mystic Falls. Gossip. Sighing, I made my way back towards the main office and to Mr. Tanner's class. And one guess as to who was sitting at a desk near the window.

A one Stefan Salvatore.

Grinning madly, I made a mad dash for the seat to his right, closest to the window. He seemed to be in a bit of a trance as his aura was more mellowed but he was soon torn from his reverie by, well, me.

"If it isn't my new student buddy. Didn't think I'd see you so soon. You look absolutely mesmerized by something. What did you see a pretty bird? Or are you that amazed by the culture of these small town hicks. I know I am," I ended sarcastically. Though his aura was less mellow than before, there was still a sense of warmth to him that didn't seem right on a vampire.

He chuckled lightly, turning his green eyes towards me, "I guess you could say that," he answered. I mock frowned and pouted slightly

"Say yes to what? The pretty girl? This town's ample ability to gossip?" I asked. In response he simply smiled and turned back towards the front of the room. How dare…

"Oh come on Steffie, I thought we were new student buddies. Now let me guess. It's the bird, yeah? Didn't think you'd get what I said what with the British slang and all that," I said, mildly impressed by this vampire's ability to act normal. He was almost...endearing? Ha, yeah endearing is the perfect word to describe a vampire.

"I've been to England a few times," he spoke vaguely and I was almost tempted to ask which decade he visited my home country. Instead I muttered quietly under my breath, "I have no doubt about that," and was amused by his confused expression. Yes, he was utterly endearing.

As I was about to badger him some more, simply because his reactions were just too adorable for a bloodsucker, Stefan was saved. By Mr. Tanner. Which meant it was time to learn. Joy.

As Mr. Tanner walked in, speaking nonsense about Mystic Falls history, I was busy watching the drama reality show that was Mystic Falls High featuring the new student who was also a vampire. And what an amusing show it was.

Without even a hint of self-preservation, a pretty brunette wearing a red blouse and, ironically, a leather jacket to match the vampire of our reality show, peered quite obviously over her shoulder to look at Stefan. Stefan turned his head toward her and though she turned her head after he caught her staring, his eyes remained on her figure for the rest of class. Cue ex-boyfriend jealousy and the making of a wonderful reality show is in the works.

It was probably the most humorous thing I'd seen all week.

Until the feeling of coolness erupted in my eyes. I looked to Stefan, but didn't feel the energy coming from him. I casually looked around the room until my eyes landed on a pretty caramel skinned girl. The aura surrounding her was all too familiar. Witch.

When Alistair and I lived in London, we crossed paths with many different species but witches were the most prominent. Their auras were almost always an earthy green color, welcoming and warm, similar to how this witch's aura was.

Watching the girl with a new set of eyes, I let my eyes linger on her a little longer before turning back into Mr. Tanner's opening speech about the class.

Class ended sooner than I expected it to and everyone filed out of the classroom with the exception of Stefan and I.

"You know, staring at a girl for 30 minutes straight is actually quite creepy. Especially when you're new and you have barely spoken a word to her," I commented, watching as Stefan gathered his bag and made to leave the desk. He paused and stared at my face.

"See you're doing it again. Staring is quite rude in this century," I laughed, amused by my own joke about centuries. The joke didn't seem to go completely over his head but he didn't catch on enough to suspect anything.

"She just- she looks familiar," Stefan defended. I laughed slightly and started walking towards the door.

"I'm sure you've seen plenty of people that share similar features on people. You know there's cousins, uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters. Genetics move through the centuries," I was actually getting quite good at riding under the radar of this guy's -read vampire's- senses. Stefan went to reply but I interrupted with a quick, "See you later new student buddy," before dashing off to my next class. C33, Physics.

Joy.

The school day didn't drag on as I imagined it would and I didn't have any more classes with creepy-but-endearing-vampire-new-student-buddy. Each class started and ended with the same opening day speech about behavior and class expectations. Absolutely boring.

It couldn't be more boring than standing waiting for Alistair though. It was already after 3 and I was tempted to walk home. I waited another five minutes before giving up and leaving a text message on his phone. This is why we needed another car.

Navigating the town proved to be a lot harder than I thought it would be when we drove this morning but a quick look at Google Maps (funnily enough, the whole town can be see if you zoom out by a hair) showed that my house wasn't too far away from Mystic Falls Cemetery.

Great. Walk by a cemetery while wild bloodsuckers pick off random humans for a midnight snack. Though, technically I'd be an early dinner.

The cemetery was pretty big for such a small town but the area around it was pretty enough. To be quite fair, Mystic Falls was actually a very beautiful town. It was a beautiful town crawling with leeches, but still.

Reading street signs, my house, located on 456 Blossom Dr. was approximately two blocks away. I headed in that direction when, once more, an even larger pounding in my head kept me from even taking a step. Grudgingly, I turned my head towards the cemetery where a whirlwind of fog was forming, seemingly out of nowhere. Blood pounded in my head frantically at the power I could feel coming from the fog and my feet disobeyed any instinct that told them to run to the safety of home.

My eyes still glowed a bright amber as I approached the area surrounded by tombstones. I looked around for the creature responsible and was only rewarded with a loud and ear splitting cawk from a large black raven perched on one of the taller tombstones.

I narrowed my eyes at the creature, feeling a slight sting in my eyes.

"Where is your master?" I asked firmly. The bird cocked its pretty head to the side, confused and almost amused by my question before screeching again and taking flight. Just as the bird disappeared, so did the fog and coolness I felt in my eyes. I exhaled and inhaled deeply, disturbed by the experience, remembering why Alistair insisted I call him if anything suspicious happened.

Stefan seemed to be the exception to the evil connotation of the word vampire and I had forgotten just how bad these creatures were.

Calming my nerves once more, I looked around the area before spotting a green, leather bound notebook. Curious, I opened the cover and read the signature.

 _Elena Gilbert._

That's it for this chapter. Hope you all enjoyed. Please review/favorite/follow if you'd like. I do appreciate _**constructive**_ criticism. Any mindless insults will be deleted. I always want to thank the people that have followed or favorited already xoxo.

Have a good day/night/afternoon

Moondust Glow


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything that pertains to the Vampire Diaries. All the content related to TVD belongs to their rightful owners. I do however own Charlotte and Alistair.**

*There is some dialogue used directly from Episode 1, "Pilot"

For such a small town, it was awful hard to find one girl. After finding the diary, I didn't peak because I know all about the importance of privacy, I looked around the cemetery to see if Elena Gilbert was anywhere in the vicinity.

Of course she wasn't.

But a quick glance at the tombstones where the diary was found indicated that she was here at some point. Asking the townspeople seemed pointless since I was new and these people would probably ask too many questions.

And so began my exciting adventure of finding Elena Gilbert, and bloody hell was it hard to find her.

I did end up asking around town about where she lived but everyone I asked seemed reluctant to tell an outsider any information on the long line of Gilberts in Mystic Falls. So when it neared 5:00, I decided to try my luck at the one place I knew most teenagers would be. The Mystic Grill.

From the outside, lights could be seen and the loud chatter and music tumbling from half open windows made it clear that this bar was a common "hang out" place for the Mystic Falls youth. Of course they would find entertainment in a bar. I walked into the bar, jean jacket held loosely around my shoulders and casually looked around the area. I only knew her face from Mr. Tanner's class and the only feature I had as a reference was her long brown hair. A very common trait actually. I sighed in dismay. For someone who was a freak observer, I wasn't doing a very good job of using my observing skills. I turned to leave the bar when a certain vampire's name sifted through my ears.

"...Stefan Salvatore. He lives with his uncle at the old Salvatore boarding house. He hasn't lived here since he was a kid; military family so they moved around a lot. He's a gemini and his favorite color is blue," a pretty blonde summarized. I blinked. She definitely beat Stefan at the stalker game. Next to her, the brunette witch from Mr. Tanner's class narrowed her eyes in disbelief.

"You got all that in one day?" to which the blonde replied, "Oh please, I got that between third and fourth period. We're planning a June wedding." Yes, Stefan was outplayed by her. Stalker of the Year Award goes to Barbie. I shook my head and made for the door before I remembered that the brunette had been one of the stars in today's little drama reality T.V. show in history. Said drama also included Elena Gilbert who I was certain was a friend of the witch. Smiling at my victory, I began to walk towards them before someone cut in front of me, blocking my way and essentially knocking me into a nearby table.

"Hey, would you watch it?" a teenager, perhaps around 16, glowered. I scoffed and watched as he moodily walked to the corner of the bar. Typical hormonal teenager, the reason why I hated going to high school and anything social. I made a face at his back and looked again for the brunette witch.

I ended up finding her at a table with a cute blonde as they talked with a slight tone of seriousness. I smirked and marched my way over, ready to be rid of the diary and any future reason to walk back into this bar. Until I was cut off. Again. And pushed down. Again.

"Jesus, what is it with Mystic Falls and walking into people. I have been in this bar for all of five minutes and have been pushed about at least twice. There are people below the average height of 5'5", you know," I would have continued if it wasn't for a familiar aura that helped me up.

"Charlotte? What are you doing here?" Stefan Salvatore asked, as if it was the strangest thing that I was at the restaurant.

"My new-student-buddy! I was just stalking you, _of course_. Why else would I be in the place where nearly every teenager that attends Mystic Falls High School be?" I asked sarcastically. I mean really. Stefan sputtered for a moment before the reason I was on a wild goose chase decided to introduce herself.

"He's, uh, with me. Are you new here? I haven't seen you around before?" Elena Gilbert asked. I hadn't realized it at first but Elena was very, very pretty. The kind of pretty that you didn't find in a small hick town like this. I smiled warmly at her and offered my hand as she hesitantly took it.

"My name's Charlotte Morgan. I just moved down here with my brother Alistair. I was actually looking for you all day," I introduced myself and dug through my worn leather messenger bag for the diary.

"I found this in the cemetery earlier and couldn't find you," I handed the diary to her sheepishly and watched as her eyes widened in panic. I quickly threw up my hands and said, "Don't worry, I didn't read it. I like the idea of privacy. I only looked in the cover for your name".

Elena looked up, relieved, and smiled gently, pushing the diary into her small purse, "Thank you. I guess you already know my name but it's nice to introduce yourself. I'm Elena Gilbert. Um, Stefan and I were just going to go join some friends at a table. Would you like to come?" She asked, gesturing towards the table the cute blonde and pretty brunette were sitting. I nearly declined the offer but remembered I was also in Mystic Falls to investigate and having friends would surely keep me updated about the ongoings of the town.

I was also a bit bored.

I turned towards Stefan and knocked his arm with my fist, "Already moved on from your new-student-buddy to the big shots, huh? I see it only fair to follow in your footsteps. I would love to join you guys," I smiled and followed them towards the table in the middle of the bar. I could feel the stares, not on myself, but on Stefan and Elena. Seems like the reality show was about to have an episode two.

Definitely awkward. But definitely entertaining too. I wonder what it must be like to be a regular teenager. Said awkwardness seemed to diffuse as the blonde made his way over, glancing slightly at Elena before offering a hand to Stefan.

"Hey, I'm Matt. Nice to meet you," He said sweetly. He was almost too sweet and gave off that typical country boy vibe that attracted nearly every girl. Nearly.

"Hi. Stefan," Stefan introduced. It was silent for a moment before I grew tired of the tension and stuck my hand out for what felt like the millionth time today.

"And I'm Charlotte," Matt seemed to finally notice my presence and acknowledged my words with a warm smile and a handshake.

"Nice to meet you as well, we have extra seat for everyone to sit down if you're up to staying," Matt gestured toward the table which now seated the witch and Barbie. Elena and Matt shared an awkward exchange of salutations before I followed them to the table and found myself seated in Matt's spot after he held his chair open for me, stating he had to talk to other friends. The brunette sat to my right and Barbie sat to my left, leaving Elena and Stefan closely together.

"So Stefan you're-"

"You're new here too, right?" the brunette interrupted the blonde. I smiled and gave a slight wave to her. Her lips flickered up before she offered me her hand.

"My name's Bonnie. And that's Caroline. You already know Elena I guess Stefan too?" Bonnie inquired about my relationship to Stefan.

"Ah yes, I'm Charlotte and that's my new-student-buddy who doesn't seem to be my buddy anymore. They grow up too fast," I wiped a fake tear from my eye before winking slightly at Stefan, enjoying the amusement I saw flicker in his green eyes.

"New-student-buddy, huh? Are you guys related? We don't usually get newcomers to Mystic Falls let alone two in one day," Caroline asked, her voice slightly haughty. Observing her quickly from the corner of my eye, I could detect the slight jealousy and annoyance laced in her purple aura. The same jealousy that was directed at me was also directed at Elena.

Smiling a little too sweetly, I replied, "No, we're not related. I figured such a small town rarely sees newcomers so that's why Stefan and I bonded for life. Seems he wants to leave the nest though. Quite tragic," I sarcastically sighed before calling over a waiter. All the hormonal teenagers were making me hungry.

"Anyway, you were born in Mystic Falls?" Caroline asked Stefan, leaving me out of the conversation as I eagerly ordered a BLT and a Dr. Pepper.

"Mm-hmm. And moved when I was still young," Stefan answered politely. Caroline turned her blue eyes to me.

"Seems you really aren't new-student-buddies after all," Caroline snarked. I laughed and caught her eyes.

"I run alone anyway," I responded cryptically. Caroline deflated at her failed attempts to get a rise out of me and I happily sipped on my soda. Although Caroline seemed a bit bitchy at first, the clear streak of protectiveness towards her loved ones, clearly visible in her aura, earned my respect.

"Parents?" Bonnie asked whilst sipping at the glass of water she ordered before myself, Stefan, and Elena showed up. Stefan visibly stopped his movements before looking back up.

"My parents passed away," Stefan stated. I choked slightly on my drink. Of course his parents were dead, silly humans. They've been dead for over one hundred years. The table looked at me for the first time since Caroline's comments and I waved them off.

"Sorry, just got a little choked up," I laughed inwardly at my own comment before seriousness returned to the table as Elena apologized for his loss.

"Any siblings?" Elena asked quietly. Stefan maintained eye contact with her before answering, "None that I talk to. I live with my uncle," I snorted in a very unladylike manner, garnering the attention of the table.

I looked around the table stating, "I wish I could be so lucky," and took another sip of my drink, looking around the bar for my BLT.

"Do you have siblings, Charlotte?" Bonnie asked politely.

"One that I _wish_ I couldn't talk to," I replied. They looked at me peculiarly before Elena chimed in, "I notice that you have an accent. Are you from England?"

"Yeah. My brother, Alistair, and I just moved here. He took a job in the sheriff's department," I explained and noticed Caroline's eyes widen in recognition. She looked at me shyly before saying, "My mother is the sheriff. She said you guys moved here because of a family accident," My own eyes widened before I groaned. Alistair just had to add a tragic backstory to our arrival in Mystic Falls.

"Er, yeah. We had, er, _family_ problems back home so my brother wanted us to start fresh and the job was kind of a bonus," I scratched the back of my head nervously, hoping they would take the bait. They did, well, except for the vampire who narrowed his eyes slightly at me. Of course it's always the vampire. An awkward silence took place as Elena shot me a sympathetic look but the tension was cut as a waiter brought my order over. I thanked him and dug into the meal. The air broke and Caroline was back to interrogating, sorry, getting to know, Stefan.

"So, Stefan, if you're new you don't know about the party tomorrow," Caroline flirted shamelessly, draping her head across her hands and staring in Stefan's eyes. Bonnie broke their gaze, stating, "It's a back to school thing at the Falls," Stefan turned his head towards Elena and I could see Caroline visibly slump at the lack of attention from him.

"Are you going?" he asked and Bonnie hurriedly answered for Elena with an, "Of course she is,". Elena turned her eyes to Bonnie before looking back at Stefan with a shy but pretty smile.

Stefan was certainly laying it on strong.

Caroline, annoyed that her plan to get Stefan alone at the party failed, left early, darting towards a group of girls near the pool table. I kept my eyes off of the lovesick glow that surrounded Stefan and Elena and paid the waiter the fee for the table. Bonnie noticed and went to protest the money exchange.

"You don't have to do that. We weren't exactly welcoming of you," Bonnie explained grabbing at my jacket when I turned to leave. I smiled at Bonnie, tugging her hands loose from my jacket, flashing the money to the waiter.

"It's fine. Thought it might be a nice way to get on Caroline's good side," I remarked. Bonnie and I waved goodbye to Stefan and Elena, who were still talking about who knows what, before we walked out the door.

"She's a good person she's just…" Bonnie trailed off.

"Jealous?" I put out. Bonnie laughed lightly, her green aura flaring brightly with the positive energy.

"Yes, that would be it but she'll come around in time," she explained, fingering the strap of her bag, pulling out her car keys.

"I do tend to grow on people," I joked, walking with her to her car. We stopped under a light as she unlocked the vehicle, looking up at my keyless hands.

"Do you have a ride? I could give you one if you'd like," Bonnie offered, moving to open the passenger door.

"Ah, that's alright. I need to learn the layout of the town anyway. Have a good night Bonnie," I waved, starting to walk towards the way I came just an hour earlier before she called out to me.

"Well, why don't you come to that party tomorrow night? It'll be a good way to meet some of the people here," Bonnie said, half of her body in her car. I thought about it for a moment. A party filled with even more emotional, hormonal teenagers. What a terrible idea.

"Sounds like it'd be fun. Why not?" I joked, giving Bonnie a mocking thumbs up. She laughed and replied, "It's at the Falls in Woodberry Park tomorrow at 8. I'll see you in school," before starting her car and pulling out of the bar's parking lot.

I began the walk home, having already memorized it, and focused on the real reason I wanted to walk home. I had already memorized the layout of the town when I was in search of Elena so rejecting Bonnie's offer of a ride had nothing to do with "learning the town".

Today's events had reminded me why Alistair and I were in Mystic Falls. Vampires. The teenage fun at the Grille had clouded my mind and I nearly forgot that even Stefan was a vampire. Letting one's guard down was the first step to death. Something that I was not in any way inclined to experience.

I walked the same path I walked from school and slowed past the cemetery, looking out into the dark forest that surrounded it. The energy was mostly gone but small remnants of the creature's aura resided on the grass and the air around the tombstones of Elena's parents. I turned my head forward and continued my walk.

Slightly disappointed that nothing made a bump in the night on my way home, I walked up the steps to my house, noting Alistair's car in the driveway. The minute I opened the door, Alistair was waiting with his first question.

"Anything suspicious?" he asked.

And because I was more inclined to do my own research in an effort to rebel against the secrets Alistair was keeping about his job, I replied.

"Nothing at all"

Sorry this chapter is a little bit late. I have been currently binge watching Seraph of the End and am wrapped in a blanket full of feels. I've also gotten back to working, my shifts have been at night for the past week, and most of the writing I do is at night so writing was put on hold for a couple days. I'm also going to be going into surgery for my wisdom teeth on Tuesday so I'm going to try and get another chapter out before then. Thank you for all the favorites and follows, it really keeps me motivated :).

Have a great night/day/afternoon.

Moondust Glow.


	4. Chapter 4

Extra early chapter because of a lot of inspiration. Hope you all enjoy. I have also made a polyvore account for the different outfits I describe under the name moondustglow. I have also left the link for Charlotte's outfit at the party on here as well.

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the material pertaining to The Vampire Diaries. That all belongs to the rightful owners.**

*I have used a little bit of the dialogue from Episode 1: Pilot.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

School was the same boring and mindless task as it had been the previous day. Mr. Tanner's class, however, proved to be quite the show though.

The history teacher, as I came to learn, was, well, an arse. A complete and utter arse. And it only made sense for our vampire hero to fly to the rescue of our damsel in distress.

"The Battle of Willow Creek took place right at the end of the Civil War in our very own Mystic Falls. How many casualties resulted in this battle?" Mr. Tanner asked, wandering around the front of the room while the rest of the class fell asleep at their desks.

"Ms. Bennett?" Mr. Tanner asked. I turned my head to watch her response as she stumbled over her words.

"Um, a lot? I'm not sure. Like, a whole lot," she answered causing a few snickers here and there. Now, come one Bonnie, don't stoop yourself to the unintelligent responses your peers would give.

Mr. Tanner scoffed, not at all amused, "Cute becomes dumb in an instant, Ms. Bennett," he scolded and Bonnie's smile slipped off her face as she burned red with embarrassment. Mr. Tanner looked around the room for his next victim, landing on Matt's uninterested face.

"Mr. Donovan, would you like to take this opportunity to overcome your embedded jock stereotype?"

"You know Mr. Tanner? I'm cool with it," Matt evaded the question. Mr. Tanner finally rested his accusatory eyes onto Elena as she bit her pencil in anxiety.

"What about you Elena? Surely you would be able to enlighten us about one of the town's most historic events? You're family was involved," he questioned. Elena looked up, lost for all the world, and shook her head, replying, "I-I'm sorry. I don't know,". Mr. Tanner tsked and shook his head in disappointment.

"I was willing to be lenient last year for _obvious_ reasons, Elena, but the personal excuses ended with summer break," Mr. Tanner condescended. Elena's face fell with the reminder of her parents. I sent her a sympathetic look and glared at Mr. Tanner. Utter arshole.

"There were 346 casualties, unless you're counting local civilians," Stefan called out, bringing Mr. Tanner's attention to him. The teacher looked at Stefan, impressed, stating, "That is correct. Mr…?"

"Salvatore," Stefan answered. Mr. Tanner looked impressed again.

"Salvatore. Any relation to the original settlers here at Mystic Falls?" He asked, maintaining eye contact with Stefan who replied, "Distant,". Distant my arse. I'm 99.99999% positive that one of those "original settlers" was sitting in this very classroom. And from the amusement in Stefan's eyes, he was.

"Well very good. Except, of course, there were no civilian casualties in this battle," Mr. Tanner lectured. I smirked. Best not to play the knowledge game with the man who _lived_ during this very battle. Hell, Stefan probably _fought_ in this battle.

"Actually, there were 27, sir. Confederate soldiers, they fired on a church, believing it to be housing weapons inside. They were wrong. It was a night of great loss," Stefan corrected, looking Mr. Tanner straight in the eye. My smirk widened at the response.

"The founder's archives are, uh, stored in civil hall if you'd like to brush up on your facts, Mr. Tanner," Stefan finished. A mic drop moment happened in my head. The rest of the class gawked at Stefan's cheek and Elena's mouth dropped open in shock. Mr. Tanner leveled Stefan with an even stare before humming slightly to himself, dismissing the class. I looked over and could see Stefan smiling to himself, helping Elena gather her things.

Maybe not all vampires were bad.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

When I walked home again that day, I kept an extra eye on the cemetery as I passed but reveled in the peace that came with living in a small town. London was always so busy and so full of supernatural creatures that it became hard to keep up with all the activity. Here, in Mystic Falls, all that remained was a very nice and friendly vampire and a witch who had no idea she even was a witch. It was...nice to not have an agenda everyday.

Walking up the path to my house, I eyed the Kia parked in the driveway with suspicion. I unlocked the door and called out, "Alistair? Are you home?" Alistair usually didn't come home from whatever job he did when we moved until late at night after he'd gathered all the data he could.

"Yeah! I'm in the kitchen!" He called back. The smell of dinner wafted over my senses and I inhaled deeply. If there was one thing Alistair was perfection at. It was cooking. I walked through the swinging door to the door, pausing at the sight of Alistair flitting around the kitchen busily.

"What is going on?" I looked around the kitchen, noticing all the remaining moving boxes had been unpacked. The kitchen was a bright and warm yellow, reflecting light even with the muddy clouds hanging low in the sky. On the island sat two plates with identical servings of a roast beef dish with homemade gravy and a serving of Yorkshire Pudding.

"I figured we needed the annual welcome dinner we have every time we moved sooner or later. Work at the department has been full so I haven't had the time but the sheriff let me off for today. Now sit down and eat up," Alistair explained. It was our tradition to have a "comfort food" of sorts whenever we moved. The "comfort food" being Alistair's cooking ability paired with my... _parents_...homemade recipe of Yorkshire Pudding. We only ever ate it when we moved as to remind ourselves of our true home. Each other.

No matter where we moved we always had each other.

The fact that I had forgotten the only thing I looked forward to after we moved was shocking in itself.

"Right. Sorry my mind's been all jumbled up lately with school and worrying over the _situation_ ," I explained. Alistair looked up from his cooking, skeptical of my reasoning.

"You forgot, didn't you?" He deduced. I cursed inwardly. I smacked a hand to my forehead and started towards the island.

"I didn't forget, there's just been a lot on my mind, you know? There's something off about this town. _Especially_ by the cemetery," I confessed, tired of the rebellious act of keeping secrets. Alistair was my rock. He understood everything.

"I thought you said nothing suspicious happened," he accused, putting the towel he was drying the counter with into the sink. I winced and rubbed at the back of my neck.

"Well, I might have been holding out on you a little bit," I said sheepishly. He turned a heavy glare my way, making me shrink at its magnitude.

"What do you mean you've been holding out on me?" he growled. I gulped at his tone and hurried to give an explanation.

"I wanted to wait until I was positive about what I was sensing. The locket lowers the magnitude of my power, you know," I half-lied. My locket did lower the strength of my sensing, as was its job, but that hadn't been the reason for my tight lips on the matter. Somehow, Alistair knew that too.

"Oh really? Is that really it, Charlotte? You know how I feel about keeping secrets from each other," he half-yelled. I winced at my full name coming from his mouth, as he only said it when he was especially angry, but my face grew hot at his response.

"Don't even start with secrets Alistair. You don't tell me anything! Ever! I need the information you have about what is going on if I can even begin to tell you anything! You need to trust me too," I exclaimed. I knew I was being petty by not telling Alistair about Stefan or the presence in the cemetery, but I wanted answers too and I'd be damned if Alistair got answers from me and I got nothing in return.

Alistair pinched the bridge of his nose in exhaustion and looked back up, "I do trust you, Char. But I want to keep you safe. Level fives are rare and valuable. I don't want you caught up in this," he explained. I walked closer to the island where Al was leaning against.

"You can't protect me forever. This is what my kind does. We are drawn to the paranormal just as they are drawn to us. It's a fact of nature. And you can't fight nature," I stated, standing a few feet away.

"Doesn't mean I won't try," he muttered weakly, pressing his thumb and forefinger to his eyes. I pulled his arms away from his face and walked into his arms.

"Just trust me, okay? I know what I'm doing and I trust the sensing. It knows what's dangerous and what's not," I whispered into his grey t-shirt. His arms wrapped around my waist and his head planted itself on top of mine as he breathed in deeply.

"Could you at least tell me what happened?" he asked. I contemplated the thought. Al knowing about Stefan could turn to two ways. Bad or very, very bad. But having him know would also relieve me of the guilt that keeping it inside had created as well as provide an extra mind and set of eyes on the case. I nodded my head and motioned towards the cooling dinner.

"How about over our family dinner, yeah?" I asked. He chuckled lightly into my ear, pushing back stray strands hair, hands lingering on the white lines that marred my face. I grabbed my plate as he grabbed his and we made our way to the newly opened dining table.

"Start talking," he stated bluntly. No more sensitive Al then. I sighed before digging into the roast beef, dipping the meat in the family gravy recipe.

"There's one at the school," I started, wanting to get the basics out. Alistair's head snapped up, eyes blazing.

" _What?"_ he seethed. I quickly moved to defend myself, my hands in the air.

"Would you let me explain?" Al nodded his head gruffly, turning to eat more of his meal, "There was one at school but he was a student. And his aura was...different," I explained. Alistair stopped his eating and turned to me, his eyes mocking.

"Ooh, he's different, is he? He's not a terrible creature because he's a _student_ there, right? Jesus, Char, you can be so naive at times," he shook his head in slight disappointment. My face turned red in anger at his accusation.

"I'm serious Alistair. He's not like normal vampires. His aura was weaker and the foreboding feeling I get around vampires wasn't there. He _is_ different," I tried to convey the feelings I got from Stefan earlier today and yesterday. Never was there a time in his presence that I felt threatened. My sensing abilities would have alerted me immediately. Stefan gave off a calm and soothing aura despite his vampire status.

"Are you even hearing yourself? A vampire being _kind_?!" He exclaimed. I shook my head at the lack of understanding he was offering to me. Though Alistair was 3 years older, I was more powerful in this type of work.

"Don't forget yourself, Alistair. I _know_ what I felt. Have I ever been wrong before?" I asked coldly.

"I just don't want you overestimating yourself like last time," my eyes snapped over to his at this statement.

"That was an accident. A mistake that I made when I was too young to understand my ability," I muttered, surprised and quite upset that Alistair would bring _that night_ up. He seemed to remember what he said and where we were because the bitterness in his eyes lightened slightly as he dropped his head into his hands, sighing.

"I'm sorry. I just want you to use caution. We've barely been here a week and we don't know much about the town or the people in it," Al explained. I reached a hand over the table, rubbing one of his arms as his eyes locked onto mine.

"I _have_ been using caution. But this one is different. I could sense it immediately. He isn't here to hurt anyone," I said, watching Al's eyes tighten slightly.

"Just be careful. I don't know how many times I have to say it but I don't want to lose you," he exhaled, his hands digging into his long hair.

"I have been careful. My shields have been searching the perimeter wherever I walked. Which brings us to our next problem," I knew that explosive Alistair would be making an appearance again after this information was revealed.

"What problem?" he asked skeptically. I sighed and prepared myself for the fury.

"There _is_ a dark energy in Mystic Falls. It isn't the student though. Yesterday when I was walking home from school I passed by the cemetery," I paused letting Al soak up the beginning of the story before continuing, "The entire area was bathed in fog and the energy around it was nearly black," Al's head snapped up at this and his eyes blazed with fury.

"And what's your reason for not telling about this one?!" He yelled. I looked around sheepishly, ready to give my useless excuse.

"I was really mad that you didn't tell me what you were doing or discovering so I wanted to keep a secret from you," the room became silent as Alistair stared at me blankly. The silence was cut by his groan of annoyance.

"Sometimes I forget that you can be as rebellious and idiotic as normal teenagers," he muttered to himself. I chuckled nervously as his brain worked through the information I gave.

"And you're positive that this isn't the vampire from your school?" he asked. I shook my head 'no' and moved to eat more of my dinner.

"It was a dark presence but there was some light in it. I don't know what it was doing there but I've been watching out for anything similar all day. Nothing's come up," I explained. Alistair nodded his head and turned to glare at me.

"You _will_ be telling me everything that you sense from now on," he demanded. I nodded my head and waved my fork at him, continuing to eat.

"I'm serious Charlotte. I can't keep an eye on you like I used to. There's too much for me to do in this town," Alistair said. I found it extremely ironic that Alistair had more time to watch over me in a city like London then he did in the small town of Mystic Falls.

"I get it. I was just annoyed with you yesterday so I withheld information," I shrugged and laughed at his mutter of 'teenagers' under his breath.

"So what is this _friendly_ vampire's name?" he asked. I looked up to see him observing me intently. Scoffing, I went back to eating the Yorkshire Pudding.

"What, so that you and your vampire hunting police department can go and pull him out of school and burn him at a stake? Yeah okay," I said sarcastically. I knew what Alistair was here for. He was here to take care of the supernatural problems by request of the council of Mystic Falls. The parts I didn't know were how much this town knew and what Alistair was being so secretive about.

"We wouldn't burn him at the stake, Char," he tried convincing me. I laughed mockingly and moved to wash my dishes in the sink.

"I'm sure you wouldn't, Al. What other reason would you have to know the name of the vampire who goes to my school? Are you going to invite him for tea and scones?" I asked, my back to Al. Before Al could reply and try to get Stefan's name out of me, I finished the dishes and turned the conversation around.

"I'm going to a party by the way," casually blunt always did the trick in my experience.

" _What_?!" he shouted. I rolled my eyes and turned back to the dishes to put them in the dishwasher.

"Is that the only word you have the capability of saying? Have your senses been so completely blown out that you can't understand a word I'm saying. I'll help you out. I. Am. Going. To. A. Party. To-night," I dragged out, watching a red flush of irritance bloom on his face.

"You are _not_ going to a party. Not after what you've told me," he finalized. I laughed at his attempt to be my dad.

"I _am_ going to a party because I need to get more information. You can galavant with the sheriff all you want but that doesn't mean I'm not about to do some investigating myself. If you didn't want me involved you should have left me six years ago," I reminded him. His face fell slightly before his posture admitted defeat.

"You aren't staying late," was all he said before he left the room, his half eaten dinner going cold at the table. A feeling of utter remorse filled through my bones. This night should have been a friendly and nostalgic one. Not a night filled with yelling and hateful words. It was low of me to mention six years ago just as it was low of him to mention _that night_.

The taste of my family's homemade dinner suddenly left a bitter taste in my mouth.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

I didn't see Alistair when I went upstairs to change so I assumed he was locked away in his room, occupying his mind with the town's supernatural residents. I looked at his door for a solid five seconds before giving up and making my way to the other side of the hall where my room resided.

I didn't care much for my room, it was a pretty blue cover and the dark wood floors contrasted nicely with my white dresser but the walls were nearly bare save for a navy woven tapestry Alistair bought me for my 15th birthday. Boxes still littered the floor and my bookcase but all of my essentials were put away.

I moved to my dresser and stripped my hands of my gloves, glancing at the pale appendages. Sensitives were most "sensitive" with their hands as it was the part of the body that touched nearly anything. Hence, gloves. It was always amusing to watch people gawk at the gloves I wore in the summer heat.

I looked cautiously around the furniture and tentatively reached a hand out to the wood. Immediately I was filled with the smell of wood and a factory before the sensation ran out quickly. Alistair always made sure our furniture was made by a specific company so that the sensations we felt were limited when we touched it with our bare hands. I pulled open the drawer and spotted a pair of light washed jeans. I dug around a bit more and fell across a frayed red and black flannel. My eyes watered slightly at the sight of the shirt. It had been my mother's. I was almost tempted to reach out and touch it just to feel her again through my abilities but resisted the urge.

I had thought about the past enough for today.

Instead, I reached for an over-sized forest green sweater and a pair of baby blue ankle socks with a white lace design around the ankle. I pulled the outfit on, tucking the sweater into my jeans. I tugged the grey socks on before pairing them with a pair of old, leather Martins. Next were my gloves, a thin pair of black lace whose material was thick enough to be protective but still feel lightweight.

My locket, as always, was wrapped around my neck as my hands reached for a black bomber jacket. I turned to the mirror hanging on my wall and fussed with the mess that was my hair. Though it looked silver in the light, the setting sun revealed the true color to be a very light blonde, another trait us Sensitives had. Very strange hair. It made us more vulnerable to the paranormal. Al's hair, for instance, was such a dark black that it could almost resemble a navy blue. Such features didn't exactly make it easy for us to blend in.

I didn't bother with much makeup other than a touch up of mascara and some blush for my cheeks. I was a pale bitch. I popped my contacts out, they had been a bother all day, and propped a pair of round lenses of on the bridge of my nose instead.

To compensate for the over observant powers that Sensitives had, we each had our own faults when it came to our five senses. Mine being my sight. Nature was all about balance so while I excelled at touch sensory feelings, my vision was slightly impaired. The opposite could be said for Al whose vision was immaculate in comparison to his sense of touch. We weren't at all slouches in the departments that made us weaker, we were still better than any _normal_ human, but it became helpful to have as many Sensitives on your side as you could to combat each other's weakness.

Thinking about Al only brought on more guilt at our argument in the kitchen so, checking the time on the clock near my bed, I decided it would be a good time to head out. I grabbed my leather bag and walked towards the stairs. Pausing by Alistair's door, I listened for any movement in the room. When I heard none I walked to a window at the other end of the hallway and saw the Kia absent in the driveway. Disappointed that I hadn't been able to apologize before I left, I walked down the stairs and to the door, ready to head straight into the hell that was a teenage party.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

Finding the party hadn't been that hard. With the location Bonnie gave me and the fact that music was pounding and people were yelling, it wasn't too hard to guess that this was it. Walking up to the party was a another type of awkward. I hadn't made it my mission to get to know my peers very well and I was paying for it now. Everyone was looking at me with curious and accusatory eyes, judging me from the crown of my head to the leaves underneath my leather shoes. I turned away from them, determined to find either Bonnie, Elena, or Stefan, seeing as how they were the only people I had remote contact with. Caroline hated me so that was out of the question.

I did end up finding Bonnie, who seemed to be in a deep set of horror and confusion. I started towards her and she jumped in fright when I stepped in her vision, cutting off her train of thought.

"Charlotte, holy shit you scared me," Bonnie breathed/laughed. I smiled at her and gestured towards the party.

"Seems like a real good time," I remarked. We both looked around at the teenagers either getting completely drunk or hooking up near the treeline. We both looked at each other in disgust and laughed.

"Well what do you expect from a town who rarely sees any activity at all," Bonnie joked. I nodded my head in agreement as we started to walk around the groups of teenagers. We passed by a cooler and Bonnie jokingly offered me a beer. I laughed and accepted the drink, scoffing at the weak flavor.

"This is what you Americans call beer? Come to Europe and then talk to me about alcohol," I commented. Bonnie smiled and we both chinked our bottles together.

"So what's it like in England? Why did you move here?" Bonnie asked. I recalled the story Alistair made up and decided to flourish it out a bit more.

"My brother and I lived in London for awhile. It's really busy and rainy. Ugh it always rained," I laughed to which Bonnie joined, "But it was nice. I liked the city because it was always different every day. There were always new people walking the streets and nothing ever happened twice. I liked the diversity," I explained. Bonnie sobered up slightly and looked thoughtful.

"You must hate it here then, right? Nothing ever happens. We carry through our monotonous routine everyday," she said. I thought about it for a moment and realized that I didn't hate Mystic Falls as much as I thought I did.

"No, I don't hate it. It's just a bit of a change from the city to the small town. But it's a nice change. Routine isn't always bad. It's relaxing and calm. Living in London was almost too crazy sometimes," and it was. What I liked about Mystic Falls was that everyone had a routine and everyone seemed content with it despite the repetitiveness.

"What about your sc-"

"Hey Bonnie!"Matt called as Bonnie turned her head in response and waved to the blonde.

"Do you want to…?" she offered. I knew now that I needed to become more involved with school and having social life so I nodded my head and followed her up the hill towards the lake. I breathed a sigh of relief when Bonnie seemed to forget the question she was about to ask. The question about the scars. Matt was talking to a somewhat irritated Caroline who couldn't keep her eyes off of the bridge running over the lake.

"Hey Bonnie. Charlotte? I didn't know you would be here," Matt commented, taking a sip from his red cup. I smiled and nodded my head towards the party behind us.

"Needed to make friends somehow," I said. Smiling at Caroline when she looked my way. I could tell she wasn't as bitter as before but she didn't seem interested in talking to me.

"We were just talking about Charlotte's life in England," Bonnie started, gathering Matt's attention as he too seemed fixated on the bridge that Caroline was staring at.

"England? Really?" he asked, genuinely shocked. Caroline scoffed and finally turned her head towards the group.

"Really Matt? She literally has an accent. How is this surprising at all?" Caroline asked. I laughed at her comment and she smiled somewhat hesitantly towards me. Baby steps.

"How is England anyway? I've always wanted to go. I heard London is amazing," Caroline spoke, engaging in conversation with me. Surprised, I sent Bonnie a meaningful look and retold the story I told Bonnie.

"I really loved it there. The shops were amazing. You'd probably love it there," I finished. Caroline seemed quite excited about my shopping stories on the streets of London. I was quite content with continuing to amuse her when a pulse vibrated through the air. I went still and felt my irises expand and glow.

"Charlotte? Are you okay? You're eyes…" Bonnie asked. I quickly placed my gloved hand over my eyes and mocked pain.

"Ah yeah, I think I got something in them. Probably some dirt or something like that. I'll be right back," I lied, feeling the foreboding presence grow stronger and the pain in my head grow a tad deeper.

"Do you need help or..?" Matt offered. I waved my hand in dismissal.

"I'll be alright. Just need some water for this. I'll be back soon," I explained and quickly walked away from the group. I walked towards the party until Bonnie, Matt, and Caroline couldn't see me anymore before veering off into the woods, my gloved fingers clutching my hair. My locket was meant to decrease the amount of pain that came with being a level five Sensitive but after clogging the pendant up without releasing the energy already inside, the effect the necklace should have had was weakening.

I leaned against a tree and listened closely for any cracks in the woods. Steeling myself, I stood from the tree and followed where my instincts were telling me to walk.

Fog. It was everywhere. And in the middle of that fog was a man. My eyes narrowed and my head pounded as the glow in my eyes brightened at the sight of the creature.

Vampire.

He was feeding on a girl, gorging himself on her blood. Quickly and quietly so as not to completely disturb him, I reached into my bag and grasped the thin stake I had kept on my person since I walked into Mystic Falls.

"You're not exactly subtle, are you?" I voiced loud and clear, my awakened power pushing my voice out as strong. The vampire stiffened in his movements and stopped drinking from the girl. He cocked his head to the side and looked over his shoulder at me, his vampire features fading. As the bloody veins disappeared from his cheeks and the red glow around his eyes faded, I could see that the vampire was, annoyingly, handsome. With crystal blue eyes and a marvelous bone structure, I found myself nearly captivated.

Nearly.

"Well lookie what we've got here? A little hero, hm?" he asked sarcastically. I quirked my head at the term 'hero' and smirked lightly.

"Hero seems a bit melodramatic, no?" I asked. The vampire slowly stood up to his full height. Even from the distance I knew he would tower over my 5' frame. Despite that, I refused to be intimidated and tightened my grip on the stake half-hidden by my bag.

"Well it looks to me like you're trying to save the girl, little hero," he mocked, gesturing towards the girl who continued to bleed out onto the forest foliage. I turned my eyes to her, a mistake I didn't realize until too late, as the vampire sped in front of me gripped my neck and slamming me against a nearby tree.

"I do wonder what you're going to do about it. _If_ you can do anything," he mused mockingly. I didn't struggle in his grip as I felt my senses blanket me in a cover of protection. I didn't find it appropriate to reveal this circumstance just yet. The element of surprise was everything.

"I don't like the reveal my secrets all at once," I choked out as his grip tightened. He smiled with a clench of his sharp teeth and brought his face dangerously close to mine.

"I can be... _very_ convincing. You'll find yourself revealing everything to me," he growled running his nose down my neck.

"And after I've finished invading your mind, I'll indulge myself on ripping your pretty little throat out," he threatened, his fangs alarmingly close to the carotid artery.

"I'm sure," I responded as sarcastically as one could when a very strong hand was wrapped around their throat. He chuckled into my neck and pulled back, his sharp eyes connecting with my glowing ones. I watched his pupils dilate widely and felt a strong influence enter my mind, pushing at the barriers I had built in preparation for my encounters with vampires. I winced at his intrusion but otherwise stood strong against the tree the vampire had pinned me against.

"Who are you?" he asked silkily, his eyes penetrating mine. I smirked slightly and tapped the hand that held the stake against my temple. His eyes grew angry and just as he was about to say something that I could only assume would be threatening, someone's yelling brought both of our attentions to the girl laying on the ground. I could hear the vampire grind his fangs before he shoved me into the tree for good measure.

"I'll be seeing you, little girl," he growled before disappearing with a loud _swoosh_. My back burned where the tree had bit into the skin and I could feel lilac bruises forming on my neck. I blinked profusely before watching as Elena and the moody teenager from the Grill picked up the bleeding girl. I followed behind them closely to find my way back to the party and blended back in with the other teenagers.

"SOMEBODY HELP!" Elena yelled to the crowd, helping the other teenager carry the girl.

"Vicki? Vicki?! What the hell?!" Matt screamed and it was only then that I recognized the similar features between their faces. They were siblings.

"What happened to her?!"

"Somebody, call an ambulance!"

"Everybody back up, give her some space!" a dark haired boy yelled, pushing at the crowd that was closing in.

"It's her neck, something bit her! She's losing a lot of blood!" Elena observed, holding a hand to the girl, Vicki's, neck.

"Vicki, Vicki come on! Look at me…" the voices blended together as they all yelled in panic. My eyes honed in on Stefan as he stared in horror and shock at Vicki's body, catching the eyes of Matt who stiffened in suspicion at Stefan's guilty expression. Stefan noticed and quickly left the scene, making him seem even more guilty.

But I knew who it was that did this.

An ambulance was called and soon the entire area was crawling with police. Vicki was taken into the ambulance which left almost immediately with Matt seated next to her.

With the flood of police officers came Alistair, who was more than willing to play the act of protective older brother.

"Charlotte? Charlotte? Char?" I heard him call. I walked around the group of students and into his line of vision. His eyes immediately picked up my light hair as he came barreling towards me. Unprepared, I was nearly knocked to the ground as he grasped my figure in his arms.

"Jesus, Al, I'm fine-"

"I'm sorry about earlier, okay? I know I was being a dick and I haven't been honest with you and-"

"It's fine, okay? I'm fine," I rubbed at his dark hair as he released a breath of relief.

"Do you get it now? Do you understand how dangerous…?" he trailed off. I sighed and pulled back despite his protests.

"Yes I know, it's dangerous. But that girl getting attacked tonight is only the beginning to a very exciting night," I muttered into his shirt. He stiffened and pulled me away at arm's length observing the bruises darkening around my neck and the slight wince I gave as his hands grazed my back

"Why do you-?"

"Hey Charlotte, Caroline and I were wondering if you wanted to come and get some coffee with us," Bonnie called. I turned my head away from Alistair to the two girls who wanted to leave the party behind them. I smiled and turned to Al in silent question.

He looked at me for a few seconds before sighing in defeat, "You can go but we are having a serious discussion about what happened tonight when you get home," he said sternly though I could see the underlying vulnerability that he held due to tonight's events. I smiled and pulled him down for a hug.

"I'm fine," I assured, still feeling the tension in his muscles. He nodded into my shoulder and let me go.

"Don't be out late," he called, eyes still staring at the bruises on my neck when I turned to follow Bonnie and Caroline. I waved my hand behind me as I approached the two girls. Quickly, before they noticed, I tugged my sweater up to above my collar bone and zipped my jacket halfway as a precaution.

"And who might that be?" Caroline asked, interest obvious in her tone. I rolled my eyes and answered, "That would be the sibling I wish I didn't have to talk to".

"He seemed pretty concerned over you. It was actually really cute," Bonnie commented, watching Alistair's back as he approached the sheriff.

"Yeah, he's the big brother after all. I think the attack really freaked him out," which I'm almost positive it did. Especially after the argument we had before I left.

"Enough with the sad shit. Let's go get some coffee. I call shotgun!" Caroline ordered, dragging us to Bonnie's car. We both laughed at her antics and followed her to the vehicle, seatbelting ourselves in, and heading to the Grill.

The Grill was nearly empty as we sat down at a table, silence taking over as the events of the night suddenly weighed on our minds. I looked around for a waiter and couldn't find any, probably because it was past 9pm.

"I'm gonna go and find a waiter. Do you guys want anything?" I offered, ready to give Bonnie and Caroline the time they needed to talk.

"I'll have a coffee," Caroline answered. Bonnie nodded for the same thing and the moment I left the table, Caroline was already leaning over and whispering incessantly into Bonnie. I turned to the bar and order the drinks, the two coffees for Bonnie and Caroline and a cup of Earl Grey tea for myself. With the drinks on a serving plate, I turned back towards our table but stopped at the cooling sensation in my eyes and the pounding of my head. I stiffened and looked in the corner of my left eye to the vampire sitting across from our table.

He hadn't seemed to notice me and was instead having an intense stare with Caroline who would do anything to eat up the attention he seemed to be giving her. Feeling ill at the thought of the innocent girl becoming trapped in his web, I put the server on the table and dug through my bag for the extra vial of vervain. I dumped the contents into what was now Caroline's drink and turned back towards our table, ignoring the daggers being glared into my person as I approached.

"Here you go," I dropped the mug with the vervain to Caroline and then gave Bonnie her mug. Both thanked me and turned towards their drinks. I casually looked over Caroline's head to the vampire's and caught him staring at me, his head quirked in an amused way. I narrowed my eyes at him as I felt the amber irises glow slightly in warning. He frowned and gestured towards Caroline, licking his fangs only for my view. I purposely turned away from him and looked back at the girls, sipping from my tea.

"This was certainly one hell of a way to kick off the new year, huh?" I asked, using Bonnie's words about the party from the previous night. Both laughed nervously and as Bonnie and I engaged in conversation about next week's comet sighting, I could see Caroline once more glancing at the vampire.

Said vampire darted his eyes to mine for a breath of a millisecond before smirking at the naive blonde, inclining his head in her direction.

Yes. It was certainly one hell of a night.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

So yeah. This chapter was actually the longest piece of writing that I have _ever_ done at 15 pages. I was planning on ending it earlier but the more I wrote the less likely it seemed that I would be able to stop. I started this chapter at around 1 pm today and haven't really stopped since. I'm feeling extra inspired and have _so_ many ideas. Hope you all enjoyed. Thank you to all the favorites/follows/reviews they make me feel so inspired to keep writing. (I also couldn't help myself by inserting a Black Butler reference at the end *insert sweatdrop*)

Have a wonderful night/day/afternoon:)

Moondust Glow.


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of The Vampire Diaries, it all belongs to its rightful owners. I'm going to be integrating bits and pieces of Richelle Mead's version of Alchemists in this story too so none of her ideas belong to me either.**

 ***** There is direct dialogue used from Episode 2: The Night of the Comet

Charlotte's outfit for this chapter is linked in my bio under: Chapter 5 (how original) if you'd like a reference. There's also the outfit for next chapter already up so just ignore that lol.

Enjoy the chapter!

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

Coming home the night after the party was not fun.

Not fun at all.

Alistair had me sit in a chair for over an hour listening to his lecture before I was locked in another lecture after I explained what happened and the reason for the bruises.

"I _told_ you you didn't listen to me. You never listen to me!" he yelled in his anger.

"I took care of it Alistair, like I always do. I had my stake and plenty of vervain in my bag. That bag is _full_ of everything I need. You made sure of that," I yelled back.

"That doesn't change anything," he reasoned. I scoffed and opened my arms wide, gesturing to the house.

"Then why am I here, Alistair? Why bring me here if you believed that I would get hurt. I am going to get hurt. That's the nature of a Sensitive. We are tracked as we do the tracking. There's no containing it, especially my level," I said, close to tears in my anger. How annoying is it that when I'm angry the only outlet my body has is crying.

"I just-Char I just…" Al struggled, fisting his hair between his fingers. I sighed and walked over to him.

"These things are going to happen and you can't keep shielding it from me. I need to learn to protect myself and strengthen my senses. It's the only way I'll survive being what I am," I explained, tugging his hands away from his hair and soothing his head with my fingers. He bowed his head and struggled with the idea of letting me go into danger.

"I want to keep you safe. I _have_ to keep you safe. For them," he spoke fervently, passionately. I chuckled and brought him into a hug.

"I know you do, but there's a difference between protecting someone and keeping them prisoner. If I have any chance at being as strong as you are you need to let me figure some things out on my own," I murmured into his hair as his head leaned against the bruises on my neck. He moved to stand fully, letting my hands fall from his head to my sides, and ran his own fingers through my hair affectionately.

"Your parents would have been proud, you know. They really would have," he complimented causing a glassy quality to invade my eyes at the mention of my parents.

"Yeah," I choked out. He smiled and let my hair go, walking around the couch where we were sitting to the kitchen.

"I made extras of that dinner if you want to finish it with me," he offered, holding a tupperware container full of the roast beef and Yorkshire Pudding meal. I grinned and exclaimed a, "Hell yes," as we enjoyed our tradition.

So maybe the night didn't end so badly after all.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

The same sentiment could be said for the morning as the sun shined brightly and warmly into my bedroom. I sat up and stretched my back, wincing at the pull on the scabs that had been created over night. Jumping from the bed and onto the floor, I walked over to the mirror and groaned at the hand mark shaped bruises around the column of my throat.

I walked over to the dresser and slipped the black gloves over my fingers, looking around for a turtleneck to hide the bruises. A gray knit sweater caught my attention so I threw the article onto the bed behind me and started to search for a comfortable pair of jeans. I found a light pair and threw them towards the shirt. I quickly dressed, tucking the shirt into the jeans before cuffing the bottom of the jeans to an inch above my ankle. I tied a pair of ballerina slippers to my feet and grabbed my bag, checking to make sure my... _supplies_ … were stocked inside.

I checked the mirror quickly, popping my glasses on, and noticed that the bruises still made visible marks where the turtleneck didn't cover. I wrapped a plaid scarf around my neck, satisfied that it covered everything before running a brush through my hair. I grumbled, still unsatisfied with the messy mane.

From the silence downstairs I knew that Al had already left so I knew I was without a ride today. I looked outside and saw the pretty weather. Not much of an inconvenience at all.

The walk to school was especially quiet so my ears were open to any odd creaks that occurred around me. Though I wasn't especially afraid of the vampire from last night, I also knew that he was strong and angry. Angry at me. Not a good combination.

The school was close enough to my house but because I had left late, the warning bell began to ring as I walked up the stairs to the main building. Cursing my luck, I dashed for Mr. Tanner's class, knowing he wouldn't tolerate any tardiness.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

Turns out I was late to Mr. Tanner's class as I interrupted his speech about the comet that Bonnie had told me about last night.

"Well it's nice to know that our students care about coming to class on time," Mr. Tanner stated sarcastically, sending a pointed look in my direction. I winced and flushed red at the attention the class was giving me.

"I'm sorry Mr. Tanner I-"

"I don't want excuses, Ms. Morgan. I know you're new here but, please, if you aren't going to bother coming to class on time don't bother coming at all," I flushed even more.

"I just-"

"That will be all Ms. Morgan. Please have a seat," he gestured towards my seat as I scurried past him, feeling his gaze sharp on my back. Bonnie and Elena sent me sympathetic looks but as I caught Stefan's gaze, all I could feel was the glare at my scarf. I swallowed nervously and listened as Mr. Tanner discussed the history of the comet that would be seen tomorrow night.

"Originally discovered over 5 centuries ago, it hasn't been over Mystic Falls in over 145 years," Mr. Tanner began. I shifted my gaze over to Stefan, figuring he would know all about the comet as well, but found that he and Elena were both staring at eachother in a lovesick manner.

"Now the comet will be at its brightest right after dusk during tomorrow's celebration," he explained but his explanations were put on hold as he stood between Elena and Stefan's desks.

"Are we bothering you, Mr. Salvatore? Ms. Gilbert?" he asked. Elena stopped her smiling and turned her gaze to the teacher's before, as cliche as it is, the bell rang. Elena smirked slightly and Mr. Tanner walked back to his desk, muttering about teenagers.

"Saved by the bell," I whispered jokingly to Elena, who laughed with me. I winked at Stefan before pushing Elena towards him. Stefan, to my disappointment, didn't seem as amused as he always did when I teased him which deflated my mood a bit and made me suspicious. I shrugged and followed Bonnie and Caroline as they discussed the planning for tomorrow's event.

"We're going to need more volunteers. Elena said she was in, right?" Caroline asked, running a pen down a clipboard.

"Yeah but we need more than just the three of us. This is supposed to be a pretty big thing," Bonnie commented. I grew slightly annoyed at being left in the back burner and popped up between them.

"I could help. I need to learn the faces of the town anyway. This could be a good chance to 'meet new people'," I offered. Caroline looked thoughtful for a second before she turned her eyes towards me.

"Hm, I don't see why not. It's pretty easy too," Caroline thought before she signed my name under the volunteer list. I smiled as things progressed into a more positive territory between myself and Caroline. Bonnie noticed and gave me a discreet thumbs up.

"Doesn't seem that bad at all," I observed as we turned the corner to the next class we had together.

"Well I'm sure Bonnie can tell you about how you'll do tomorrow right now. Apparently she's a _psychic_ ," Caroline said mysteriously. I cocked my head to the side in a questioning manner towards Bonnie.

"I'm not psychic. I just, see things, weird really strange , sometimes, end up...happening," Bonnie explained. I mentally froze at her words. So maybe her powers weren't as repressed as I thought previously.

"So then are you clairvoyant?" I put in for good measure. Caroline nodded her head towards me as we both stared at Bonnie.

"Apparently neither. Grams says I'm a witch," shocker, "and that my ancestors were these really cool Salem witch chicks or something like that," I looked at Bonnie from the corner of my eye, measuring her power with my sensing abilities and found that she had plenty of it just lurking beneath the surface.

"Grams tried to explain it all but she was looped on the liquor so I kinda tuned out. Crazy family? Check yes," Bonnie mock checked in Caroline's clipboard, "Witches? Ha, I don't think so," she finished. Oh, how far from the truth you are Bonnie.

"Yeah, well, feel free to conjure up the name and number of that guy from last night," Caroline swooned. I froze in my spot and stared at Caroline's back. Running slightly to catch up with them when I fell behind slightly in my shock. I prayed Caroline hadn't spent _any_ time with the "guy from last night".

"Guy? What guy from last night?" I sputtered. Caroline swooned again and closed her eyes, imagining the man's face.

"Oh, he was so gorgeous and he kept staring at me. At me! Take that Elena," Caroline bumped her fist into the air. Seems there was a bit of tension between Elena and Caroline regarding Stefan.

"Um, what did he look like?" I asked, trying not to sound suspicious. Turns out I wasn't slick enough as Caroline turned her blue eyes to me, taking up the haughty tone again.

"He was hot," was her short response before she walked away from Bonnie and I to her other friends.

"Do you remember a guy from last night?" Bonnie asked in confusion.

"Not at all," I answered.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

The school day ended as quickly as it always did as I found myself leaving the building, ready for a 5 hour nap. I had yet to tell Alistair about the waning power of my locket and the more it weakened, the more tired I became with the threat of a relapse. I was just about to exit the campus grounds when a familiar voice called out to me.

"Charlotte!" Stefan called, jogging slightly to catch up with me. I stopped walking and turned around, a smile forming on my face. Said smile dropped when I noticed the very serious look Stefan was giving me.

"Can we talk?" he asked, looking around for any eavesdroppers. I nodded my head and followed him to a picnic table in front of the school. I sat on the tabletop as he paced in front of me, waiting for him to ask whatever he had to. Finally, after a few minutes, he mustered his resolve and turned his green eyes towards me.

"What do you know?" he asked. Immediately I froze, my expression blank. I hadn't planned for this type of thing to happen and was completely unprepared. Stefan's expression was equally blank but his expressive eyes demanded answers.

"I-I don't…"I struggled to think of an explanation or an excuse.

"Don't make up excuses either. _I_ know that _you_ know something about me. So don't lie," he demanded. I bowed my head and grit my teeth, seeing no other option but to be truthful.

At least slightly.

"How did you…?" I started. Stefan narrowed his eyes on my scarf and tugged on it with his fingers. I sighed and looked around the courtyard for any wandering eyes. Seeing none, I pulled the scarf off and folded the turtleneck over so that Stefan could see the bruises that marred my neck. His eyes narrowed even more in anger as he breathed heavily.

"It happened last night. But my scarf doesn't explain how you suspected anything. So before I tell you anything, you're going to fess up too," I negotiated, tugging the scarf back around my neck. Stefan paced for a moment before he joined me on the table.

"He told me about you. About what happened last night," Stefan said vaguely. I scoffed at the lack of information he was providing.

"Who's he?" though I already had a probable guess at who 'he' was.

"My brother, Damon. The vampire that attacked you at the party last night," he explained. Well at least I had a name to the bloodsucker who gave me serious tree burn yesterday.

"Ah, the sibling you don't talk to. Yeah, he was a bit of a pain in my arse if I'm completely honest," I rubbed at my throat, wincing at the faint pain that lingered still. Stefan followed my hands movement, eyes gentle with concern.

"What did you do?" he asked. I turned my eyes up to his, mine glinting with mischief.

"I pissed him off is what," I sighed. Stefan laughed shortly looking straight ahead.

"You still didn't answer my question, Charlotte," Stefan pointed out. I through my head back and watched the clouds roll across the sky.

"I know that you're a vampire. I also know that you don't want to hurt anyone," I summarized, not ready to reveal everything about myself.

"How long?" he asked. I turned my head back to him, catching his gaze.

"From the moment I met you," I answered, watching his reaction. He didn't seem so surprised, something I wasn't expecting. He suddenly laughed as if realizing something.

"You don't seem so surprised," I remarked blankly, watching as amusement filled the panic that had previously resided in his eyes.

"It was there from the very beginning. All your jokes suddenly make sense," he laughed again, remembering the subtle hints I dropped from the moment I met him. I laughed too, glad someone understood my humor. Our laughter was cut off as the both of us heard Elena talking about Vicki to Matt. Stefan and I exchanged glances before we both turned our heads forward, faking casual conversation to listen to theirs.

"Did she say what kind of animal it was that attacked her?" Elena asked. I shifted my gaze to Stefan and listened more intently.

"She said it was a vampire," Matt spoke the dreaded words. Both my head and Stefan's snapped up as we looked at each other listening to the rest of Matt's words.

"She wakes up last night and mutters 'vampire' and then passes out. She was probably just drunk," Matt's words finalized whatever thought process Stefan was going through. I quickly grabbed his jacket before he could leave.

"Wait, Stefan? Didn't you hear him? He doesn't believe her. He thinks she was talking in a drunken stupor. No one's going to believe her," I tried to convince Stefan against doing anything rash. Stefan shook his head in denial.

"I can't risk it, Charlotte. I need to compel her to forget about Damon. I can't let him ruin what I have here," Stefan spoke with such urgency that I knew I had no chance of convincing him otherwise. I sighed and nodded my head, watching Elena and Matt from the corner of my eye.

"You're just going to exactly what he wants you to do. He wants you to squirm in self-doubt. To give in. Don't give him the opportunity," I stood from my seat on the bench, trying to convince him.

"I can't risk it Charlotte. If you are what I think you are then you know the importance of secrecy. I have to do this," Stefan said. I rubbed my temples and nodded.

"I'm just warning you. He's playing you," I advised, already knowing that he wouldn't listen. Stefan shook his head at my warning and disappeared with the same _swoosh_ that the vampire, now Damon, had last night.

Just when I think I'm enjoying a small town, drama starts to settle in.

What a bother.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

I had been on my way home-I stopped taking the path that passed the cemetery for _obvious_ reasons-when Bonnie honked her horn at me. I turned and saw her and Caroline packed in the vehicle together, beckoning me over.

"We were going to meet Elena at the Grill to make up festival posters," Bonnie explained as Caroline flashed an already finished flyer out the window. I smiled and jogged my way over, sitting in the backseat.

"Why am I always stuck in the backseat?" I pouted. Caroline laughed and turned her body to look at me.

"Because it isn't safe for children to seat in the front. It's dangerous," Caroline joked.

"I am not a child," I pouted more, sarcastically crossing my arms.

"You're the height of one," Bonnie quipped from the driver's seat.

"Touche," I answered, content to watch the town fly by through the window. We arrived at the Grill quickly and found Elena already at a table outside, a waiter taking her order. We quickly rushed over before he left and ordered ourselves some drinks.

Caroline propped a box on the table and slapped an already finished festival poster between us. I observed the date on the festival and noticed that it was during school hours.

"The festival takes place during school?" I asked, flipping the paper over to see if there was anything on the back. Elena laughed and turned towards me.

"Sometimes I forget that you're as new as Stefan is. School is closed tomorrow for the festival," Elena explained, pointing out the time on the flyer.

"Something about how the comet sighting is so rare that the third day of school _must_ be cancelled," Bonnie laughed, shifting comfortably in her seat.

"Can't exactly complain about that," I muttered as Caroline dug through the cardboard box for the flyers that needed to be finished.

"We need to finish around fifty more of these to hand out tomorrow during the festival so scissors up ladies!" Caroline joked, handing each of us our own stack.

"So what happened with Stefan last night?" I asked Elena, who immediately blushed scarlet. Caroline, who seemed to have gotten over the good Salvatore brother with the bad Salvatore brother, was more than willing to talk about Elena's escapades.

"Yes! Elena, you need to spill. Now," Caroline demanded, leaning half across the table in her enthusiasm. Elena, who looked surprised that Caroline was happy to hear about Stefan being with her, sputtered slightly.

"Er, well, we just...talked," Elena summarized, turning eagerly back to the pile of flyers in front of her. Caroline laughed as if she didn't believe her.

"Oh, come on, Elena. Did he walk you home or what?" Caroline dug, her eyes bright. Bonnie stopped her work to watch Elena's face darken more.

"Well he came by the house after the party because he was worried about me after what happened," Elena shrugged as if it was a casual thing to do. Caroline squealed in her excitement for her friend. Elena fell slightly in her seat and I decided to be a good person and help her out.

"Um, guys, sorry for the abrupt topic change but what are you writing down for the purpose of the festival? Or the history or anything? I don't know anything about the comet," I interrupted. Elena glanced at me from the corner of her eye with a grateful smile. I winked slightly and tuned back to what Bonnie was saying.

"I was talking to my Grams and she said that the comet is a sign of impending doom," Bonnie started, finishing up one of her flyers as she explained.

"Oh, how bloody cliche. There's always signs of impending doom. I mean look at that raven over there," I pointed out. I noticed Elena stiffen slightly and wondered why she was wary of the creature. I made eye contact with the bird and felt a slight pressure on my temple. I glared, narrowing my eyes and could only imagine the amusement the bird's master felt as I held it's blank stare.

"Well, the last time it passed over Mystic Falls, there was a lot of death. So much blood and carnage, that it created a bed for paranormal activity," Bonnie finished. My interest was peaked slightly at that, thinking about the possibilities of a comet attracting the paranormal.

"Yeah, and then you poured Grams another shot and she told you about the aliens," Caroline said, her eyes filled with humor. I laughed and took a sip from my lemonade, finishing another poster. Bonnie looked slightly put out but went back to making her posters without another word about her Grams. To be quite honest, I actually wanted to meet Bonnie's grandma, just out of curiosity.

"So then what?" Caroline diverted back to the subject of Stefan and Elena, much to the latter's displeasure. I sent her a sympathetic look and went back to gluing.

"So then… nothing," Elena said, keeping her eyes on Caroline to make sure the girl believed her. Caroline leaned on her hand and looked at Elena in disbelief.

"You and Stefan talked… all night?" Caroline asked skeptically, "No...sloppy first kiss or touchy feeling of any kind?" Caroline affirmed. Elena was quick to prove this correct and answered with a quick negative.

"Nope. We didn't go there," she said without a hint of disappointment. Caroline groaned and kept her stare on Elena.

"Not even a handshake?" Caroline asked. I laughed and turned my chair more towards Elena.

"Didn't realize my new-student-buddy was such a prude. I apologize greatly," I mock bowed as Elena blushed. Honestly, I thought it was good that all Elena and Stefan did was talk.

And that wasn't at all because I was worried Stefan would jump and attack the girl if they did...things.

"He can't be a prude I mean, Elena, we are your friends," Caroline gestured towards herself, Bonnie, and I (I will not admit it but...it was nice to be included) before continuing, "You're _supposed_ to share the smut!" Caroline said loudly. Elena smashed her hand across Caroline's mouth and smiled in amusement.

"We literally just talked for _hours_ ," Elena repeated, going back to the flyers. Caroline threw her head back and brought her face even closer to Elena's.

"Okay, seriously, what is with the blockage? Just jump his bones already. It's the easiest thing. Boy likes girl. Girl likes boy. Sex," Caroline explained. Bonnie looked between Elena and Caroline disapprovingly before going back to work.

"Profound," Elena responded, finishing a flyer. Suddenly, a thoughtful look appeared on her face as she seemed to realize something. The minute this occurred, she began to gather her belongings, handing the finished flyers to Caroline and leaving the money for her drink on the table. Bonnie followed her movements and spoke for the first time since Caroline commented on her grandma's drinking habits.

"Where are you going?" Bonnie asked, her eyes watching Elena turn to leave.

"Caroline's right. It _is_ easy. If I sit here long enough I'll end up talking myself out of it instead of doing what I started the day saying I was going to do," Elena explained. I furrowed my eyes at her words, trying to comprehend what she said when I noticed her leaving. I quickly stood up and called her name to which she turned back to me, ready to get into her car.

"Would you mind giving me a ride home? I'm not really feeling up to walking because of the animal attack," I asked. Caroline screeched about finishing my work so I lifted my finished pile of flyers, a smirk on my face.

"Yeah, sure Charlotte. Just give me your address," Elena nodded, starting her car and pulling it next to the sidewalk where our table was.

"I'll be seeing you ladies, later," I waved goodbye but I quickly snatched Elena's money and dropped enough of my own money for the tip and our four drinks. Bonnie's protests fell on deaf ears as I covered them with my hands. She grinned, shaking her head as Caroline thanked me.

I got into Elena's car and told her the address, hoping she'd recognize the street name. Her eyes widened as she listened the the address I spoke.

"Abernathy Drive? That's the same street as the boarding house," Elena remarked, turning down said street.

"Boarding house?" I asked in confusion. Did these people realize that I have literally been in this town for one week?

"Ah right. It's the Salvatore Boarding house. Stefan lives there," Elena explained. I made an 'ah' sound and watched as she bit her lip in contemplation. She went to open her mouth to speak but I beat her to it, already knowing what she was going to ask.

"Yes, you can stop by Stefan's before you drop me off," I chuckled, watching her release a breath and turn to smile gratefully at me. She seemed to think about something as she pulled up to the boarding house.

"Thank you, by the way. For earlier," she referenced towards my 'saving' of her from Caroline. I bat my hands at her, shaking my head.

"Oh it's nothing. I know how people like Caroline can be. They mean well but they can be...much," I laughed. Elena nodded in agreement on my assessment of Caroline before hesitating to leave the car. I laid a hand on her shoulder and smiled encouragingly.

"From what I've seen, that boy is completely smitten with you. There's nothing to worry about. Just go in there and...well I'm not sure what you're here for exactly but do it anyway," I laughed. Elena seemed to steel her nerves as she nodded her head and walked the path to the enormous door. I sat back and watched her knock before seeing her disappear through the doorway.

Young love.

I sat in Elena's car, content with leaning my head against the plush seat when a loud caw evaded my senses. I jumped, looked around and noticing the door that Elena had left open was now closed. I ran from the car to the front door, hesitantly looking in. Almost immediately a throbbing headache ensued as my eyes cooled. The sensation was strong and familiar.

Damon.

I ran through the door and watched as he stood nearly on top of her. I calmed my breathing and strolled through the hallway.

"Well, well ,well. Looks like Steffy has a bit of competition no?" I chastised, watching Elena flush and back a couple feet away from Damon. He froze and locked eyes with me, not exactly glaring but not as welcome as he had been with Elena.

"And you might be?" Damon asked. I smirked and leaned against the wall, watching for any sudden movements.

"I would be Charlotte," I answered, leaving out my fake last name. Damon smiled, a fake one at that, and tilted his head at me.

"Pleasure," he mocked. I smiled just as tightly and observed the area I had walked into. It was quite beautiful if I was being honest and the color schemes gave off a nice antique feel, though perhaps a bit over the top. I decided to voice these thoughts.

"It's a bit overzealous, no?" I observed. Damon's lips quirked up as he took a glance around the room.

"Charlotte-" Elena started, sending me a warning look. I gave her a look of complete innocence and watched as she groaned into her palm.

"Oh, really it's quite alright, Elena. I absolutely agree," he charmed with a smile fit for a gentleman. My shoulders fell as my attempt to irritate the vampire failed. Damon seemed to notice this and grinned easily at me.

"Right well, I'm glad we can agree on furniture. Elena, Stefan is _clearly_ not home, so why don't we just wait to see him tomorrow?" I offered, watching Damon's eyes flicker with recognition and amusement.

"Stefan? Oh, he'll be here any moment. We could wait in the living room for him," Damon said, flashing me a knowing grin over Elena's head. Elena's eyes brightened at the idea and I was quick to walk further in the house, stepping in the space between Damon and Elena.

"Ah, you see Elena _really_ needs to drive me home and we simple can't wait another _second_ ," I persuaded, feeling Elena's glare heavy on my back and Damon's ever constant amusement.

"Charlotte," Elena whispered sharply into my ear. I stiffened and listened to her quiet, "Please," before groaning and looking at Damon's icy eyes. He smirked at my apparent defeat and gripped my shoulder tightly, playing off the action as an act of affection. We entered the...living room? Is this even considered a living room? Bloody hell, it looked like the Queen of England's bedroom.

"Wow. This is your living room?" Elena asked, voicing my thoughts. I tried pulling my shoulder free but was left with the slight crack of my bone popping slightly and a quiet groan escaping from my lips. Damon only held tighter and sent me a tight smiling, turning back towards Elena.

"Salon, parlor, Sotheby's auction-"

"Vampire lair," I murmured, hardly a whisper, but of course Damon heard it and tightened his already tight grip.

"What was that?" Elena asked, her eyes landing on the hand Damon had planted to my shoulder. I smiled, somewhat falsely, and tried, once more, to loosen the vampire's grip.

"Ah, I was just voicing my utter distaste for this decor." Elena gave me "the look" as I've now dubbed it and turned her gaze around the room. Damon watched her smile and followed her eyes with his.

"I see why my brother is so smitten," he said, causing Elena to look at him with a confused expression.

"Well, it's about time. For a while there I never thought he'd get over the last one. Nearly destroyed him," I snorted quietly at him. He turned a knowing eye my way and watched for Elena's reaction. I was pro good vampire Stefan, no doubt, but to be quite honest…

I was a drama addict.

"The last one?" Elena asked warily, her eyes clouded with dubiousness. Ah, now we were getting to the good stuff. Damon looked at me from the corner of his eye and smiled knowingly. Oh yes, he knew I was enjoying this as much as he was.

So maybe I was a bit of a sadist.

Eh.

"Yeah, Katherine. His ex-girlfriend?" Damon asked as if he had no idea that Elena was naive to Stefan's other...was lovers the word? Elena awkwardly shook her head and looked down at the fancy carpet at the mention of Stefan's ex.

"Oh, you two haven't had the awkward exes conversation yet, hmm?" Damon winced in mock sympathy, not that Elena recognized Damon's mockery.

"Nope," Elena said quickly.

"Oops, well I'm sure that it will come up now," he said before, of course, adding on, "Or maybe he didn't want to tell you because he didn't want you to think he was on the rebound." Elena's eyes tightened at this and I felt a twinge of sympathy. Using Damon's distraction with Elena as leverage, I ripped my shoulder out and walked around the room, standing in front of a fireplace with a tray full of liquor on top.

"Seems a little harsh, no?" I commented, drawing a glass and sifting through the liquor available. I could feel the two pairs of eyes following my movements and smirked when I felt Elena's heavy stare.

"Um Charlotte? You're underage," She squeaked out as I poured myself a glass of a particular brandy from what my nose could smell. I poured the glass half full and brought it near my face, allowing the scent to waft up my nose.

"Legal in Europe," I responded, taking a tentative sip. You could never be sure with American alcohol. I gave an impressed look and took a larger sip. Damon's eyes darted from the drink to me, his eyes brimming with amusement.

"You do have wonderful _taste_ Ms. Charlotte," Damon commented, eyeing my drink. I gave my hand a 'so-so' wave and plopped myself down on one of the leather chairs, feeling the seat contour to my body.

"It's alright...for American liquor anyway." Elena sputtered at my response and moved to take the glass away.

"You want some too, Elena? You know, I never took you for much of a drinker but I'm sure even you need a drink after hearing about... _Katherine_ ," I gasped, making Katherine sound like a dirty word. I laughed at her face and moved to reassure her.

"I'm just kidding. Don't listen to 'all love is doomed to failure' over here. I mean he is the 'none that I talk to' sibling, Elena. He's just being a dick," I waved my glass around, watching the amusement drain from Damon's eyes and become replaced by irritation. Elena looked thoughtful for a moment, considering my words.

"Ah, the topic of the day, my new-student-buddy," I spoke up,causing Elena to jump and Damon to look at me in confusion for, not even he, had sensed Stefan before I did. Stefan locked his eyes with mine in surprise as he rounded the corner. I raised my almost empty glass to Stefan as he entered the 'salon, parlor, Sotheby's auction' and looked pointedly between Elena, Damon, and myself.

"Elena. Charlotte. I didn't know you were coming over," Stefan said stiffly, visibly annoyed and disgruntled, something Damon took complete pleasure in.

"I know. I should have called. I just-"

"Oh, don't be silly. You're welcome anytime. Especially you, little Brit," Damon smirked. I grimaced, downing the rest of my drink, standing up to join the other three in the middle of the living room.

"I'd probably come over regardless if you'd like it or not. Gotta find the secret door around here somewhere," I said, walking around the room, touching the bookshelves in a half-joking matter. I was serious about finding the secret lair I knew was hidden in this mansion. Damon seemed to realize I was half-serious as he pulled me into a tight grip again. I groaned at the pressure on the bruises around my neck and readjusted myself, not bothering to move much. Stefan's displeasure seemed to amplify.

"You know, I should break out the family albums, or some home movies. But… I have to warn you, he wasn't always such a looker," Damon said, leaning closely to Elena's face while still holding onto me. I sighed and pinched his arm, causing him to release me slightly before catching my lower arm and pulling me more tightly. I growled under my breath slightly and leaned my entire weight into his body in response.

"Honestly, Damon sweetheart, you're only making it more awkward for us. You know what Elena? Let's just go. Boys will be boys as Alistair always says," I pushed my barriers out and felt Damon's arm drop from mine as the slight pain of my power overcame his.

Take that you bloodsucker.

I started to walk towards the door but Damon's words interrupted me as he called out, "Must you leave so suddenly? Stefan's just embarrassed about those family photos I was talking about."

"Ah, we really must be going. Gotta drive her home," Elena said, leaning slightly away from both brother's at the tension they created.

"Thank you for stopping by, Charlotte, Elena. Nice to see you both," Stefan butt in, eyes still pinned on Damon's. Seeing this as our cue, I went to grab Elena's arm and pull her towards the door.

"Ah, yes, it was a delight to see you too Stefan dearest, but we must make our leave. Yes we must," I ushered over, grasping her arm and pulling us away from Damon. Before I could take two steps, however, my other hand was pulled from my side and held against a pair of soft lips. I could feel the slight threat underneath the seemingly sweet act as Damon's fangs grazed threateningly over the frail skin of my wrist.

If I didn't know better, I'd have thought he was giving me a kiss.

Good thing I knew better.

"Right. Leaving. I'll see you later Stefan. I'll see you never Damon. Have a wonderful eternity," I snarked, dragging Elena towards the door.

"I'll see you soon, Lottie," Damon called out as Stefan spoke his own quiet goodbyes.

I slammed the door shut turned to Elena, both of us nervously laughing.

"Was this what you had in mind when you decided to 'take action'," I quoted, amused and slightly thrilled by what happened. I mean of _course_ I was thrilled with the evil, dangerous vampire who was also _highly_ amusing and had an amazing collection of liquor. We both walked to the car and were off to my house, eager to leave the awkwardness that was the boarding house.

"Not exactly," Elena breathed, turning her head back towards the direction of the house.

"Well, I'm sure we'll hear about this from Stefan tomorrow at the festival," I sighed, already hearing his lecture in my ear.

"Festival?" Elena asked, confused.

"Well, duh. You're going to go to the festival with Stefan tomorrow right? Or are you so smitten with the older brother that you've forgotten about 'Prince Charming'?" I joked but my amusement stiffened as her eyes seemed less thrilled about being around Stefan.

"Listen, Elena, you've only known the guy for maybe a couple days. Going to festivals like these will help you get to know him. Damon was just being the dick that I know he probably is. He's just trying to screw things up around here," I explained, trying to give Elena some kind of reassurance.

"I know it's just...I don't know anything _about_ Stefan. At all! I don't want to get too involved with someone if I'm not sure how it'll end," Elena whispered. I understood her concern and was happy that she was asking herself these questions. She didn't know the first _thing_ about Stefan and it probably wouldn't be a good idea to allow the relationship to continue while she remained ignorant to his...nature.

"It's good that you're wary. Don't get too involved with someone you don't really know. But don't immediately shoot them down either. Give Stefan a chance to prove himself and if he does then great and if he doesn't well… you're a beautiful girl I'm sure you won't have a hard time finding someone new," I winked, watching her face flush slightly in embarrassment.

We reached my house in no time at all seeing as how it was on the very same street as the boarding house and I noticed that the Kia was still missing from the driveway. What the hell, Alistair?

"Thanks for everything, Charlotte. Really. I'll look for you tomorrow at the festival," she said, unlocking the car door.

"Sounds like a plan," I answered, moving to walk up the driveway.

"Actually, I'll just pick you up tomorrow. 2:30 sharp," Elena decided. I went to protest but she caught me before I could utter a word.

"Don't bother. I _will_ be picking you up tomorrow. We can talk about the older Salvatore and yourself while we're at it," Elena winked before pulling out of the driveway, waving as she drove away.

Why does this shit always happen?

All I wanted was a nap.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

So I'm currently writing this with a very large ice pack lodged onto my jaw because wisdom teeth surgery :). Fun times. I was planning on writing this chapter as the complete episode 2 but I didn't want to make it too long (I got to 17 pages this time).

As always, thank you to everyone who favorited/followed/reviewed, it means the world. I'll be uploading the rest of the episode soon, so stay tuned.

Have a great night/day/afternoon :)

Moondust Glow


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything that pertains to The Vampire Diaries nor do I own any ideas I pull from Richelle Mead's interpretation of Alchemists. All ideas that aren't my own belong to their rightful owners.**

*I do use a little bit of dialogue from Episode 2: The Night of the Comet.

For some reason, the links that I put in my bio aren't showing up even though they show when I edit my bio. I'm not really sure why and it is very irritating :( but if you did want to see the outfits Charlotte wears when I describe them, my polyvore account is moondustglow and each outfit is labeled by chapter :).

Enjoy the chapter.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

Alistair didn't come home until late that night, going on about the Vicki girl and I could only hope that Stefan had succeeded in compelling her into believing it was an animal that attacked her. After observing Stefan's aura for awhile, I could tell that his power was nowhere _near_ that of his brother's. Such thoughts led to the question of whether or not it was wise to abstain from drinking human blood when it weakened him so.

I'm sure Alistair would have me locked in my room for a month if he heard such thoughts.

It was around 1pm and I had just finished with my shower, immediately bathing my hair in gel to try and combat the rapid curls that would burst when my hair dried.

Read "try".

Turns out my hair was having none of it as it poofed as enormously as it always did and any hopes of running the day with sleeker hair flew out the window. I brushed a mascara wand through my light eyelashes to darken them and tied my drying hair up in a towel so it was out of the way. Having wanted visible eyebrows for once, I darkened them up with an eyebrow gel. It was quite a pain having light hair. Though everyone raved about it, all you were left were invisible eyebrows and eyelashes. Makeup was almost always necessary.

Checking the weather on my phone, it was a comfortable 65, I dug around my drawers for another oversized turtleneck, the bruises Damon gave me had yet to vanish, and spotted a baby pink one. Looking through another drawer I found a knee-length plaid skirt and a pair of gray ankle socks, my gloves already tugged up my wrists. I dressed quickly, tucking the shirt inside the skirt and slipping the socks over my feet, pairing the outfit with an old pair of ash brown oxfords.

I tapped my necklace slightly and could feel the energy around the pendant nearly bursting from being contained for so long. I knew that if I didn't find a solution quick, a relapse was sure to happen.

I took my hair out from the band it was held in and slipped my glasses on, grabbing a worn denim jacket on the way out the door, an article from my father. I curled the turtleneck sleeves slightly around the jacket's as I walked down the stairs, hearing Alistair speaking quietly in the kitchen. I approached the door quietly, leaning slightly against the wall, my ear right against it.

"I can't believe you haven't cancelled this event. Do you know what happened 145 years ago? A vampire is already loose and we're basically giving him an all open buffett!" he yelled into the receiver. Silence blanketed the room as Al listened to the caller for a couple seconds before he exploded again, not caring about being quiet.

"There _is_ going to be extra cover tonight, Liz! I know for a _fact_ that there is a vampire in Mystic Falls. This is what you called me here for and suddenly you're hesitant to believe me!" Al seethed. I could hear his pacing from my place outside the door and knew that there would be faint smudge marks from his shoes on the floorboards. The silence didn't last nearly as long as it had just minutes before as Alistair suddenly stopped his pacing, yelling once more into the cell phone.

"Right, well, when another attack occurs in the next week, _you'll_ regret not taking my warning seriously, Sheriff," Alistair said coldly, slamming the phone on the granite top of the island. I waited a few minutes before entering, not wanting him to know I had been eavesdropping as Al paced once more.

"You know, if you do that any longer the floorboard will give out and you'll find yourself stuck in the house foundation and I won't be helping you out," I commented, finding the scuff marks he had etched into the floor in his agitation. He stopped his pacing and looked at the floor, groaning at the black that marred the area.

"God dammit," he muttered, getting down on his knee to dry and buff it out. He finally gave up and looked up to see my questioning stare. He groaned again, knowing I wanted answers.

"Listen, kid, I'm really not in the mood for your aggravating stubbornness so could you please leave this be?" he asked, a slight whine in his voice. I smirked amused and approached the island, leaning against the top.

"I can see you're a bit annoyed right now so why don't we leave out my persistent questioning and skip to the part when you give in to my charms and tell me what I want to know," I said coyly, watching as he dropped to the counter in exhaustion. He dug his hands into his hair, a trend I've noticed a lot as of late, and threw his head back in defeat.

"The sheriff doesn't want to believe there's a vampire in Mystic Falls yet," he summarized. I quirked my head to the side and frowned.

"Then what-"

"Are we here for?" Al finished my question. I nodded my head and watched as he shook his in irritation.

"She wants me here in _case_ something happens when she she bloody _knows_ there's vampires in Mystic Falls!" he growled punching the the counter behind him.

"What exactly does she want from you then?" I asked, leaning further into the island. Al scoffed and walked around the kitchen, putting things away that were out of place. A habit I noticed he did when he was agitated.

"She wants me to keep any eye on things. And when I _do_ keep an eye on things and find fucking vampires in Mystic Falls, she doesn't believe me!" he exclaimed, nearly squeezing a glass to shards. I ran around the island and plucked the glass from his hands before he could shatter it and placed in one of the cabinets.

"And about tonight?" I asked, turning back towards him. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion and leaned back against the counter next to me.

"Were you eavesdropping?" he asked though I'm pretty sure he already knew the answer to _that_ question.

"Do you even have to ask? What do you expect me to do when your voice is echoing across the whole house _and_ you refuse to tell me anything? I mean really Al, let's honest about whose fault this is," I explained, giving him a look. He groaned, rubbing his face with his hands before staring at the ceiling.

"What am I going to do with you?"

"You can start by explaining some things so I don't have to use nefarious methods to get the information," I smirked, laughing at the defeat visible on his face.

"I wanted to increase the patrol at tonight's event. She said no. I mean, how blind can this woman be? I wouldn't be surprised if her daughter was hanging around a vampire herself!" Oh Alistair, how accurate you might just be.

"Well, you'll be there right? I'm sure you alone is worth 3 officers combined," I added. Alistair considered this and turned his eyes towards me, eyeing my outfit.

"You'll be there?" he asked. I nodded my head, looking at the time above the oven.

"Elena Gilbert is picking me up in about 10 minutes to work the festival. I'll keep an eye out for anything," I stated sternly, locking my honey eyes with his steel ones. He looked into them with his sharper vision and seemed satisfied with what he saw.

I turned from his gaze and rubbed slightly at my temples, feeling the effects of the weakening amulet leak out to my skull. Alistair noticed and placed a cool hand against my right temple.

"It clogged up again?" he asked knowingly. I just nodded my head as he lifted the locket in his hands.

"We're going to need to get this to another witch. Someone who knows about us," he muttered lowly. Only a certain number of witches, of course, knew the spell that created the locket's purpose in the first place so only a few knew the method to clearing the added energy correctly. Sensitives were an extremely secretive group, wishing to keep the methods to what we do hidden. If we wanted to find you we would, which was why so few knew of our existence unless we made ourselves known.

"Where exactly were you thinking?" I asked sarcastically. As far I knew, there was no witches in Mystic Falls besides Bonnie and maybe her grandmother, someone I wasn't betting knew the spell for the locket. Alistair sighed and rubbed his eyes again, the stress getting to him as his forehead created worry lines. I reached over and smoothed my thumbs across his forehead, letting my hands fall to his shoulders.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's not nearly as bad as last time," _yet_ , "So I have some time before we need a witch _urgently_. Just worry about your job with the Sheriff and if it gets too bad I'll tell you," I reassured. Alistair stared down at me doubtfully.

"Will you really tell me?"

"Maybe."

"God dammit it, Char."

"Listen, if it gets beyond unbearable, you will be the first to know. Promise," I swore. I might have had a tolerance for pain but when the necklace crapped out on me and the full force of my Sensitive abilities beat against my skull, I was more than willing to swallow my pride and ask for help.

"Well, if you _are_ going to this festival, do you have everything in your bag?" he nodded towards the leather satchel hanging off of a coat hook near the front door.

"Right down to the sulfuric acid vials," I confirmed. Every Sensitive had their own...collection of sorts full of tools used against the paranormal. Although my bag had school supplies and books, a hidden zipper would reveal the different weapons and herbs tucked safely inside. Vervain, silver, different acids, and a sharp wooden stake were just a few of the precautions I kept in my bag. Alistair was persistent in his affirmation that I had anything I would need.

"It never leaves my side." And it was true. My leather bag never, _ever_ left my side for any reason. Alistair went to say something before the honking of a car horn broke interrupted. I checked the time and found it to be 2:30 on the dot.

"Good. Keep that bag close. You never know when you're going to need it," he approved, dropping a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"I'll see you at the festival. Remember those rules and keep watch. I'll be there around 7." Alistair hugged me before walking towards the door to greet Elena in her car. We approached as she unlocked the door and smiled brightly at Alistair.

"It's lovely to meet you Mr. Morgan, or is it Detective Morgan?" Elena asked, ever the polite small town girl. Alistair laughed and reached his hand out to shake hers.

"Neither. Mr. Morgan sounds too old and Detective Morgan is a mouthful. Just call me Alistair," he introduced, smiling charmingly.

"Elena," she responded, waving slightly.

"I'll see you tonight, Alistair," I muttered monotonously, annoyed that he was putting the charms on an innocent 17 year old girl. Alistair grinned cheekily and grabbed my face, sloppily kissing my cheek.

"Gack!" I yelled, disgusted by the wet mark I had on my cheek. I scrubbed at it furiously, hearing Elena and Alistair laugh.

"I'll see you tonight, Charlie," he smirked, laughing at my reaction.

I loathed that name.

Elena pulled out of my driveway as I gave the pretty middle finger to Alistair and laughed at our antics.

"Interesting relationship you got there," Elena laughed, passing the boarding house.

"Oh, love, you have _noo_ idea," I giggled, enjoying the peace away from a mass group of people while I could.

Tonight would be interesting.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

The festival main stretch of Mystic Falls was booming with activity; children were getting their faces painted, parents were sitting around benches, tents were set up with various crafts and gifts to purchase. All in all, I found myself enjoying the small town festivities. It was a happy environment filled with laughter and I find myself wishing I was as ignorant to the supernatural as these townspeople were.

Pity.

Elena and I immediately searched for Caroline, knowing she was in charge and the latter was quick to give us our duties.

"Just start handing these flyers out. They have all the different events in order so get them to everyone that walks by," Caroline ordered quickly, handing Elena and I our stacks before rushing off to give someone else orders. We both stared at each other and the pile of papers in our hands before laughing. We handed out flyers to those we noticed didn't have one, looking around the area for Bonnie. We ended up finding her near the entrance to the center of the town and made a beeline for her.

"Bonnie!" Elena called, waving her over. Bonnie looked around for the person calling her name before seeing us. She jogged quickly over and smiled warmly.

"Having fun?" she asked somewhat sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and handed out another flyer.

"As much fun as I can have while handing out flyers that nobody really wants but takes it anyway to be polite," I answered. Both girls laughed before we turned to walk around the perimeter of the event, passing tents and laughing children on our way.

"Tonight, the Night of the Comet!" Bonnie called out to people passing by who gave fake smiles in return and I laughed as she tried forcing people to take flyers.

"Would you like a program?" she asked, handing a couple and their child a flyer full of all the events. Elena stayed suspiciously quiet through our rounds and Bonnie glanced over slightly, watching Elena's downcast gaze.

"He didn't call, huh?" Bonnie guessed. Elena sighed and handed out another program.

"Or text. But I realized we never even exchanged that stuff. We've never gotten to the whole _texting_ part," Elena realized with dismay.

"Isn't that essential? I'm surprised that stuff wasn't exchanged the night after the party," I voiced. Oh, come on Stefan. This is not how you make a girl feel good.

"That's an important milestone in any relationship," Bonnie said. I nodded my head in agreement and smiled towards a little girl with a purple butterfly painted on her cheek.

"Isn't it? The timing is wrong anyway," Elena spoke monotonously as if trying to convince herself of that. I sent a sly look her way and tsked.

"Now Elena, don't make excuses for not getting his number yourself," I teased. Elena sent me "the look" and continued walking.

"He hasn't made an effort either though. Is that some kind of code for something amongst guys? Like, not getting the girl's number means it's a quick bullshit kind of fling?" Elena asked, chewing on her lip worriedly. I sighed and used my hands to stop her.

"I can one hundred percent assure you that this isn't some 'fling'. If you could see the way he looks at you, you wouldn't be having these worries. He might be waiting for you to make the first move. Besides, you guys just met, give it some time," I reassured, conveying my honest opinion. She seemed to brighten slightly and let a small smile build on her face.

"You're right. He does seem a bit old fashioned anyway," Elena commented, handing the last of her programs out.

"You have no idea," I muttered. Really, these people were so naive. I began to follow them as they discussed school when an annoyingly family aura invaded the area. I paused and looked across the lawn, catching a certain vampire's eyes.

"Hey guys, I'll be right back," I called out to Elena and Bonnie, rushing across the lawn as I noticed Caroline eyeing Damon. I quickly grabbed his arm and pushed him out of her line of sight and behind one of the vending trucks. He seemed amused at my forcefulness as he allowed himself to be pushed around.

"See, I told I would be seeing you. And you thought you could stay away," Damon smirked that stupid goddamn smirk.

"Well, I just couldn't stay away. Seems like other people can seem to stay away either. Like Caroline Forbes," I gritted my teeth, annoyed that he found this amusing.

"People find me hard to resist what can I say?" He shrugged, rolling up the sleeves on his leather jacket. I growled slightly and poked my pointer finger in the middle of his chest.

"Just do yourself a favor and stay away from her. If you must, find a pet _outside_ of Mystic Falls," I negotiated, slipping my hand inside my leather bag to be safe. He seemed entertained by the thought have me telling him what to do.

"And what if I wanted you to be my _pet_ ," he asked, quirking his eyebrows slightly. I made a gagging sound and pushed him back further into the vending machine.

"I'll pass," I said, feeling ill at the thought of being anyone's _pet_. Damon seemed to lose all humor as he walked forward, towering over me slightly. In a move I probably could have never seen coming, he had our positions reversed so that I was against the truck and he was in front of me, his fangs visible in the slight sunlight.

"I could always... _make_ you," he muttered lowly, eyes falling on the bruise that became visible when our positions reversed. I locked my eyes with his and pushed slightly at his mind, watching as he winced slightly. My fingers, which had remained in my bag during our...chat...dipped lightly into the bottle of vervain I had hidden in a pocket. As Damon fell to the ground slightly, leaning on one knee, I grabbed his face with my vervain soaked fingers and watched him rear back in pain.

"Don't underestimate me, Damon. I don't have a strong desire to cause you harm but hurt anyone in this town and I won't hesitate. I don't care that you feed on human blood but do it outside of Mystic Falls to make both of our lives easier, got it?" I growled, watching as his eyes bled red and violet veins spread across the top of his cheeks. I let go of his face and pulled my own aura back and brushed my hand off on my thick skirt, looking around the area.

"Have fun with the festivities, Damon. Come light a lantern with me if you get the chance," I said casually, throwing my last program at his feet. I heard him chuckle lightly despite being in slight pain from the vervain and could feel his stare on my back as I half skipped towards where Elena and Bonnie were standing. I turned my eyes over my shoulder and found Damon gone.

Bloody hell, could I not have one night of paranormal free fun?

I found Elena with Bonnie, handing out candles to people who didn't have one. I caught Bonnie's eye as she finished handing a woman her own lantern. She dug through the box she was carrying around and handed me a candle.

"Here you go. Where were you? Caroline was freaking out 'cause she needed more people to hand out candles," Bonnie asked, placing her box on the ground as Elena dropped her own box.

"She was probably talking to the "other" Salvatore," Elena teased, winking at me when she saw my glare.

"Other Salvatore?" Bonnie asked, looking between us.

"Stefan's brother. She-"

"Has no interest at _all_ in Damon Salvatore because he is an utter ass who has no self-preservation," I finished for Elena. Bonnie looked confused but seemed to let it go as Elena giggled into her white leather jacket. Matt joined us, followed by Caroline, both of their candles lit.

"Hey," Matt greeted, dipping his candle low enough to light Elena's candle as she responded with an equally quiet, "Hey."

I watched Stefan approach Elena, tapping her shoulder slightly to get her attention. Elena turned blindly, touching her candle to Stefan's unknowingly. I smiled slightly at their shy interaction and turned my gaze back to the sky as the rest of the group migrated slightly towards the fountain that sat in the middle of the town's center.

The comet shot past the sky, complementing the moon slightly as it passed. Suddenly, a warm light glowed under my face, lighting the dark now bright candle in my hand. I looked up and met warm steele eyes.

"Hey," Alistair whispered, watching the area around us. I followed his gaze as it narrowed on Stefan and Elena.

"That him?" he asked gruffly, glaring slightly. I rolled my eyes and pushed him slightly so that he wasn't staring so obviously at the pair.

"If by 'him' you mean the extremely delicate vampire that won't even look at a drop of human blood then yes," I nodded, watching the pair talk from the corner of my eye. This time, Alistair rolled his eyes and slung an arm around my shoulder, pulling my head down slightly under his arm.

"Gack, get offa me!" I struggled as he fussed with my already messy hair. Alistair laughed, tugging even more harshly at my hair before letting his arm go from around me. I jumped back from him slightly and glared hotly.

"You will not be doing that again," I warned.

"Says the girl who needs to wear heeled shoes to get onto the 'big girl' rides." Alistair looked around, noticing I was standing by myself and that the rest of my new friends were off in a group together, "I thought the point of you coming to this festival was to socialize, not stand around by yourself," he observed. I rolled my eyes and looked pointedly around the town circle.

"I'm not here for just a social experiment. I have a job too, you know," I reminded, looking back up at the sky. Al scoffed and turned his own gaze to the comet. He looked thoughtful for a moment before someone called in on the radio attached to his belt.

"Duty calls," he joked, waving the radio in the air.

"Doesn't it always?" I asked, remembering all the lost time we had because of his jobs. He shrugged and looked over my shoulder.

"Something tells me you won't be left alone for too long." He walked towards the Sheriff, who had been standing along the perimeter of the festival, keeping watch. I followed my gaze to where Alistair had been staring and found Elena approaching me.

"We were all going to meet up at the Grill for dinner. Did you wanna come?" she asked, pointing towards Matt, Bonnie, Caroline. I smiled and nodded, following the group up to the bar.

"Guess your Grams was wrong, aye Bonnie?" Caroline asked, looking around at the lack of "evil" creating havoc. Oh, Caroline, if you only knew.

"Would you like for there to be a bloodbath filled with the dead bodies of Mystic Falls?" Bonnie asked sarcastically.

"I'm actually glad there is no crazy, psychotic conflict uprooting our lives," I said sarcastically. Of course I spoke too soon as the moody teenager from my visit to Mystic Falls approached.

"Hey, has anyone seen Vicki?" he asked in a panic.

"You're her stalker. You tell us," a boy with dark hair answered.

"I can't find her," the moody teenager, who I could now tell was Elena's brother, responded, his eyes darting around the bar quickly.

"She probably found someone else to party with. Sorry pill pusher, I guess you've been replaced." And so created a whole other sort of drama.

"Pill pusher? What's with the pill pusher, Tyler?" Elena asked, confused.

"Ask him," he responded, nodded towards Elena's brother. Her brow furrowed in confusion and disappointment as she rounded her dark eyes on her brother.

"Are you dealing, Jeremy?" Elena accused. The boy, Jeremy, opened his mouth once or twice without uttering a word.

"She's never gonna go for you," Tyler antagonized. Jeremy narrowed his eyes at Tyler, crossing his arms and pushing himself closer to Tyler's table.

"She already did. Over and over and over again." Tyler jumped from his seat just as I pushed him back down before anything rash could occur.

"Who the hell are you?" he asked harshly, tugging his shoulder out from underneath my hand.

"You slept with Vicki Donovan? No wait, Vicki Donovan slept with _you_?" Caroline asked in a surprised and slightly disgusted tone. Elena sent her a hurt look and stared back at her brother.

"And I didn't even have to force her to do it either," Jeremy pushed, glaring at Tyler. Matt rounded his eyes on Tyler as well, looking him up and down.

"What the hell is he talking about Ty?" Matt seethed. Tyler sputtered slightly and tried to find an answer. Lucky for him, I was done with the petty high school drama.

"You know, I really don't see how this is at all relevant when a _girl_ is missing. You guys can continue your little chat _after_ we find Vicki," I butted in, glaring at Jeremy and at Tyler. This seemed to remind everyone of the problem as Matt sent me a thankful look.

"We'll check the back," Bonnie volunteered, pulling Caroline with her.

"I'll check the square," Matt said, pushing through the crowd to search for his sister. Jeremy moved to follow but Elena intercepted grasping his arm. I walked back towards one of the employee only doors into an alley behind the Grill. I already had two guesses as to where Vicki Donovan would be.

Out partying. Somewhat probable.

With Damon.100% probable.

I let my senses go, opening my mind slightly to the area around me to find the paranormal auras that lurked around the town's square. I sensed Stefan, who was speaking with Matt, Bonnie who was talking about cheerleading with Caroline, and, strangely enough, I found Elena, someone I hadn't felt an inkling of supernatural aura from at _all_ , as she yelled at her brother.

Surprisingly, Damon's heavy aura was harder to find, but I blamed that on my malfunctioning necklace. I did end up finding him on top of a building just outside of the town's center, holding a very distressed Vicki. I ran, hoping I didn't look too suspicious, towards the building, finding the door to the roof open when I approached.

"...bunnies?" I heard Damon speaking. I kept my feet light on the staircase, listening to the conversation.

"Let her go," Stefan ordered. You know, he really needs to be more...firm, when it comes to dealing with Damon. It's really no wonder why he can't control him.

"Shh," Damon whispered, presumably to Vicki, "Really? Okay," Damon let his arm fall from Vicki for a moment, entertaining the idea of dropping her as both her and Stefan screamed, "No". Deciding it was time to intervene, I dropped my hand into my bag, feeling for the vervain and calmly approached the two brothers.

"You're a real pain in the arse. You know that?" I shook my head, half amused by the way both brother's jumped. Using their shock to my advantage, I grabbed Vicki's arm and threw her behind me so that she was placed directly in front of the door that led off the roof.

"Actually, the same good be said for you, Lottie," Damon half growled, annoyed his fun was partially over. Stefan looked between us, his eyes narrowing slightly on the hand in my bag.

"I _told_ you to leave the townspeople alone. There are plenty of other beautiful girls for you to terrorize outside of Mystic Falls," I condescended. Stefan glared slightly in my direction, angered by my allowing of Damon's diet. I raised my eyebrows at him before turning back to Damon.

"I _suggest_ that you wipe her memory of that night because it seems Stefan was...unable to perform the duty," I ordered. Damon just laughed and sped in front of me despite Stefan's yelling.

"And what makes you think I'll do _that_?" Damon asked, fangs glinting slightly. I merely pressed my right hand slightly into his stomach watching as his eyes widened slightly at the threat of a stake.

"I'm really not in the mood for cleanup tonight so could you just do it? Please?" I asked, sighing in irritation. So much for a paranormal free night. He seemed to look around before locking eyes with Vicki who had tears streaming down her face. He approached the girl and ripped off the bandage that was held there, the vampire bite still very much visible and vicious.

"What attacked you last night? Hm?" Damon asked softly, looking in her eyes. I narrowed mine and gripped the wood in my hand tighter.

"A-an animal?" Vicki asked, unsure of her own answer.

"Damon," I warned. He ignored me and pressed harder.

"No. What _attacked_ you last night? What was it? Think. Think hard," He growled, bringing his face closer to hers.

"It-it it was _you_! _You_ attacked me. You monster!" Vicki screamed, launching herself at Damon. Damon caught her eyes and I could feel the chill of compulsion in the air.

"It wasn't me. It wasn't me," he repeated soothingly, turning her head towards Stefan before whispering, "It was him." Stefan growled as Vicki threw herself away from Stefan, who had been trying to pull her away from Damon, and began crying again, her hands clutching her head and her neck.

"Stefan Salvatore did this to you. He's a murderous, vicious vampire. And he did this to you," Damon compelled as Vicki repeated the words back monotonously. He then pulled at the skin of her neck, causing the wound to open once more and tossed her to Stefan.

"What the _hell_ is wrong with you?! Do you not remember the part about me causing serious harm to you if you didn't erase her memory?" I growled, launching myself at him. Damon, who was prepared this time, grabbed my hands, forcing the stake to the ground and locked my arms tightly.

"Oh, but sweetheart I _did_ erase her memories. I just...replaced them." he chuckled, watching Stefan struggle with the frantic girl.

"If you couldn't fix this before I don't know how you're going to fix it now," Damon teased, watching Stefan weaken as the girl's blood wafted into his senses. My struggles against Damon were useless and any hopes of grasping the vervain in my bag were lost as his arms pinned my away from the bag, my wrist trapped between the folds of his jacket.

"You're...lifestyle, has made you _weak_ ," Damon taunted. I couldn't help but slightly agree with Damon and found myself disgusted by it.

"All your little vampire parlor tricks are _nothing_ compared to the power you could have. That you now need unless you want the bitten girl to go screaming vampire throughout the town square," Damon spat. I watched Stefan struggle with his urges to consume human blood as familiar violet veins slithered up his cheeks. He seemed to come to a conclusion as he tossed Vicki to the concrete.

"Is this what you want? You want me to, to give in to the urge and kill? Is that it? Go ahead. Let her go screaming. Let the town drag me to a stake and burn me alive. Because then, at least I'll finally be free of you," Stefan said, eyeing Damon with hatred. At Stefan's words, I found there was no other choice left. I reared my head back into Damon's jaw and broke free from his grasp, slapping my hand across his face with my vervain soaked hand before walking hurriedly towards Vicki.

The job of a Sensitive entailed two things: the secrecy of the supernatural as well as the extermination of those who threatened that secrecy. Each Sensitive had their own...case of sorts filled with whatever would be necessary to get that job done. The objects inside said case could be found at different headquarters around the world. When Alistair and I lived in London, headquarters could be found in the southern part of London. Before we left, we stocked up on nearly everything in the shop as we weren't too sure where we would run into another headquarters.

It was required that each Sensitive have an ace in the hole, God forbid something went wrong and a human discovered the truth about the paranormal. Because of my touch sensitive abilities, I was able to venture through the memories of everything I touched. With those memories came the ability to change them.

I stripped one glove off and pressed a single finger to Vicki's temple.

Immediately I was bombarded.

From her earliest memory to the present time, each flash echoed through my skull and a strong pounding beat furiously through my blood. I furrowed my brow and finally found the memory of the party. I simply plucked Damon out of the picture and replaced it with a nasty looking coyote, erasing the confrontation from just earlier.

What seemed like hours was actually only a few seconds.

I ripped my fingers from her temple and hurriedly pushed the glove back on, falling back slightly, my hands to my head as I felt a new scar etching itself onto my temple. Clenching my jaw tightly, I glared at a surprised Damon and Stefan as they shifted their gaze to a calm Vicki.

"Where am I?" she asked, her right hand lightly touching the wound on her neck.

"Ah I think I ripped open my stitches," she groaned. I quickly grabbed her arm before Damon could get to her and guided her towards the door.

"You were just a little loopy on those drugs the doctors gave you. Matt's looking for you at the Grill," I helped, she looked around confused, before nodding off and walking clumsily down the stairs.

"Now wasn't _that_ quite the show. I do wonder where a _human_ learned that little trick," Damon whistled. I turned my glare to him, blaming him for the pounding headache in my skull as each and every one of Vicki's memories took up my brain's space. Damon put his hands up in mock surrender, smirking wickedly.

" _You_ are not on my good side anymore. Not that you were before but at least then we had some sort of _understanding_. You will not be feeding on anyone in town. Got _it_?" I growled, glaring heatedly. Damon's eyes flashed with remembrance of our last encounter and shrugged.

"What is it that you want, Damon?" Stefan asked tiredly. Damon turned his attention to his brother again and smiled sarcastically.

"That's for me to know and you to dot dot dot," he teased, before sending a wolfish smile my way.

"I believe we both know this but I'll be seeing you soon, Lottie," Damon said before hopping effortlessly from the roof. I sighed in relief and leaned heavily against the wall next to the door of the roof. Stefan turned his eyes towards me in silent question but I merely shook my head, waving my hands in an effort to keep him from asking the question.

"Another time then?" Stefan asked. I shrugged, unwilling to let any bit of information about me leave.

"You should go find Elena. And for God's sake be a part of the 21st century and ask the girl for her number already?" I groaned, tired of the Elena and Stefan drama. He seemed to force out a laugh before his eyes turned serious.

"Do you need…?" he started.

"Help? Yeah. But you don't know anything and I'd like to keep it that way for awhile, So go have your romantic evening watching the comet. I'll be fine," I said sarcastically. Stefan lingered for a moment before nodding and disappearing. I walked over to the ledge of the roof and sat down, swinging my legs slightly as I dug through my bag for the emergency cell phone Al gave me for, well, emergencies.

"Char?" Al asked when I called the only number on the phone. I sighed, checking the time and found it was _way_ too late.

"Yeah. I might need your help. One week in Mystic Falls and I've already used my ace. How pathetic," I muttered. Alistair groaned and I could just imagine his hand raking through his dark hair.

"Where are you?"

"Find the tallest building. I'm the girl sitting on the roof's ledge," I said bluntly.

"Jesus, Char."

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

"And it was absolutely necessary?" Ali asked as he dipped a moonstone into chamomile, rubbing my temples and forehead with it.

"Would you like a teenage girl running through the streets screaming, 'Vampire!', Al?" I asked sarcastically. He put his hands up in surrender and set the oil and stone aside.

"The Salvatore brother's, huh?"

"More like Salvatore brother. There's only one bad one mind you," I corrected, feeling the rock clear my mind slightly.

"They're still vampires, Char," Alistair reminded, leaning against the counter.

" _Stefan_ happens to be the only vampire we've encountered that has abstained from the life of drinking blood. He doesn't seem so ordinary to me," I said. Alistair seemed to think for a moment before furrowing his brows.

"That could be just as bad as having a human drinker around, Charlotte. If he falls off the wagon, it'll be hard for him to control it," he concluded. I had thought about that too, but something seemed different with Stefan, like he had more reason than just not wanting to hurt humans.

"There's still...something. I really don't care right now. I just hope Damon takes my warning," I sighed, thinking of Caroline.

"Something tells me he won't. He'll probably do the opposite just to spite you," Al joked. I frowned and wondered how much truth there was in that statement.

"Somehow I think you're right," I groaned tiredly. There was never a simple day it seemed.

"You should head up to bed. You need to rest," Al said worriedly, glancing at my hands and the new scar marked lightly into my face. His eyes landed on my necklace. He touched it lightly and winced at the heavy air around it.

"We _need_ to get this taken care of," I rolled my eyes at the obvious remark.

"Point me to the closest witch who knows the spell and I'll be there in record time," I said coldly. Al let go of the pendant and ruffled my hair.

"I'm serious about getting sleep. You need it," Al pushed me towards the hallway leading to the stairs, staring pointedly up the hall where my room was. I followed his instructions with zero resistance, ready for the plush feeling of my pillow beneath my worn head.

I went through the mechanics of changing into pajamas before collapsing onto the mattress, lazily pulling the covers up to my chin.

My last thought was of Caroline, who I only hoped sensed the danger that approached her if Damon ignored my warning.

Somehow I doubted the girl would notice.

Ah, a problem for another day.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

So another chapter and the closing to episode 2. I'm going to start on the next chapter as soon as possible. Thank you once more to all that reviewed/favorited/followed, it keeps the creativity flowing.

Have a good night/afternoon/morning :)

Moondust Glow


	7. Chapter 7

So I am actually the worst person ever for not updating but I was finally able to get around to it what with this crazy thing called life. Enjoy the chapter. I also have the 7th outfit up at Polyvore. My user is Moondust Glow.

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything that has to do with The Vampire Diaries or Richelle Mead's interpretation of Alchemists.**

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

I woke up with the _worst_ fucking headache.

Why not?

It had been a restless sleep for myself as all I could think about was the threat of Damon to Mystic Falls and the very real possibility that Caroline was in danger.

Such thoughts did not make for healthy sleep time.

Alistair was gone, again, by the time I dragged myself from bed and I found myself strangely relieved that he wouldn't have to see my lack of sleep as made visible by the dark circles under my eyes. I grabbed a towel and walked sluggishly to the bathroom, sighing with pleasure as the smell of lavender and chamomile warmed my skin and hair. I didn't find myself caring about my hair or my face as I searched for an outfit, pulling out light shorts, black stockings, and a grey t-shirt. I pulled the clothes on through muscle memory, wincing as my head pounded once more.

I dug through my drawer, finding a thicker pair of gloves than my usual lace ones. Because of the use of my...ace...last night, the thin material of my normal gloves would do next to nothing now that my touch sensitive abilities had been freed. The use of my "ace" was something that I only did when I deemed it absolutely necessary and with Damon's threat of letting the secrecy of vampires out, well, I deemed it necessary. The freeing of my "gift" was something that I rarely did mainly because of the after effects I received from it. Though I could use it as much as I wished, I had no doubt that if I chose to, irreversible consequences would be a result. I sighed, lacing up a pair of red high-top converse before grabbing a light brown wool jacket for warmth as I prepared for the school day.

Glasses perched on my nose with my bag slung over my shoulder, I made my way out the door to the path I had memorized for school.

How monotonous.

It didn't take long to find Elena and Bonnie as they exited Bonnie's car and I found myself gravitating towards my new friends.

"Hey guys," I greeted, frowning when I noticed Bonnie's face.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, watching as Elena rolled her eyes and Bonnie gave a sheepish smile.

"If I asked you a totally odd question, would you still answer it truthfully?" Bonnie asked. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously and slowly nodded my head.

"Does Stefan give you any... _weird_ vibes?" she whispered as though people were eavesdropping. I froze and wondered where the girl who was practically pushing Elena onto Stefan went.

"Er, well he's a little quiet and mysterious. He's really got the loaner thing going for him," I supplied, shrugging my shoulders.

"And there's nothing wrong with that. That's just...Stefan," Elena said, defending her...boyfriend? Were they dating now? I wasn't used to being included in teenage drama. 

"What brought all this on?" I asked as we walked towards the school. Bonnie shrugged, looking at the ground as if she was unsure how to answer.

"I just- Elena. You're finally single after like 4 years. Don't you wanna, I don't know, look around a little longer?" Bonnie asked. Elena laughed and looked around the school courtyard, watching all the guys around.

"Right, because I'm _so_ that girl. You were the one telling me to go for it! What happened to that?" Elena joked, pushing lightly at Bonnie's shoulder. I watched her as her eyes flashed with a memory.

"I accidently touched Stefan last night and I got a bad feeling, okay?" Bonnie gave in. So, the witchy senses were finally coming out, eh? Elena searched Bonnie's eyes for a moment, trying to find a reason to believe her.

"Is that it?" Elena asked. Bonnie huffed and started to walk in the other direction. I quickly grabbed her arm as she moved to defend herself.

"It was bad-bad. Like, _death_ bad. I'm just concerned. What kind of best friend would I be if I wasn't?" Bonnie asked, pinning Elena with her gaze. I looked between the two girls as Elena grasped Bonnie's shoulders, moving to stress her point.

"I love you for that. It's what makes you an amazing friend. But I feel _good_. Something I haven't felt for awhile. It feels like things are starting to feel normal again. And Stefan is a big part of that," Elena smiled tenderly at her friend as Bonnie relaxed somewhat. I looked around the courtyard for the missing blonde to our "quartet" and found that her car wasn't parked in the lot like it usually was.

"Have you guys seen Caroline?" I asked. Elena looked up, her eyes shifting through the students to find her blonde friend.

"I tried calling her last night about cheer practice but she never answered. Maybe she slept in? She was at the Grill pretty late last night," Bonnie said, checking her phone for any missed messages or calls.

Bad.

Very, very bad.

"Speaking of, are there slots still open?" Elena asked, changing the subject as we walked further across the grass. Bonnie looked through her phone for a moment and found the answer to the question.

"About five slots are open. Did… you wanna come, Char?" Bonnie asked glancing up from her phone. I shot my head up and gave a nervous laugh.

"Er, me? Cheerleading? Not a good combo," I giggled. Elena gave me 'the look' and Bonnie looked me up and down.

"You're pretty short," she started to which I began to protest, "but that might be good for our stunters. We need someone to do the flips and shit," Bonnie finished.

"I really don't think that's a good idea. Besides, aren't tryouts over the summer anyway? I don't know _anything_ ," I argued. Bonnie rolled her eyes and slung an arm around Elena's shoulder.

"She missed summer practices, too, so you won't be alone if that's what you're worried about. Just come to practice, it's nothing binding," Bonnie convinced. I looked between both girls and found hopeful smiles lighting their faces. I groaned and threw my head back.

Why was I so easily peer pressured?

"Ugh, fine! Where is practice anyway?" I grumbled. Elena laughed and Bonnie slung her other arm around my shoulder.

"It's out by the football field after school. You can just wear your P.E clothes for now before Caroline gets you a uniform," Bonnie answered, smiling. Said smile was wiped clean off her face as Stefan approached.

"Good morning Elena. Bonnie, Charlotte," he greeted. Bonnie shifted uncomfortably as she backed away slightly.

"I'm gonna go and, uh, find Caroline. I need to get you guys signed up for practice. I'll see you around," Bonnie waved awkwardly. Stefan followed her with his eyes before looking at Elena and I.

"She doesn't like me much, does she?" Well if that wasn't hitting the nail on the head than I don't know what is.

"She just doesn't know you," actually, she probably knows more about Stefan's true nature than you do, "and she just needs to get to know you. She's my best friend, just looking out for me."

"Right," Stefan said, unsure. Elena rolled her eyes but suddenly brightened as an idea popped in her head.

"I've got it. Are you guys free tonight?" she asked, glancing at Stefan and I. We both nodded our heads as Elena practically jumped in excitement.

"Dinner. My house. 8:00. It can be a welcome Charlotte to the neighborhood/Bonnie and Stefan bonding time. You two can spend some quality time together so she can see what a great guy you are," Elena concluded. She turned to me, smiling the smile I found convinced everyone to do her bidding.

"Invite Alistair while you're at it. I'm sure Jenna would _love_ to meet him," she winked. I rolled my eyes, laughing at the idea. He was too much of a charmer, really. He'd probably have Jenna eating out of his hand with just a few of his smooth words.

Suddenly, hairs stood on the back of my neck as a _whooshing_ sound flew through the air. On instinct, I stuck my hand out behind Stefan's back and caught a football before it could pummel into Stefan's body. The thrower, Tyler as I noticed, dropped his mouth open in shock, opening and closing it. Matt looked at Tyler, a smirk forming on his face.

Stefan turned to me and saw the football in my hands as I shrugged. I handed the ball to him and watched as he threw it through the air, a perfect spiral, back to Tyler. Elena gasped slightly and gave Stefan and I impressed looks. I smirked as the warning bell rang from inside the school.

"I'll catch up with you guys, later. Mr. Tanner already has it out for me," I laughed, seeing the admiration for Stefan brighten Elena's eyes.

I wasn't the first one to Mr. Tanner's class as Bonnie was already in her usual seat, constantly checking her phone.

"No luck?" I asked. She looked up, sighing and throwing her phone back in her bag.

"None. She's usually the first one here, too," Bonnie said worriedly. I followed her gaze to Caroline's seat and glanced back at Bonnie.

"Are your witchy senses telling you anything?" I asked. Bonnie's eyes snapped up to mine, narrowing in defense.

"It's not funny," she said lowly. I put my hands up, shifting my seat closer to hers maintaining eye contact.

"I never said it was. You've been right so far, yes?" I asked, wanting to know just how far Bonnie's premonition skills went. Bonnie seemed to lower her defensive front and relaxed a little further in her seat.

"I could be wrong. About Stefan," she answered. I shrugged my shoulders and hummed slightly.

"Or you could be right," I replied. Bonnie's eyes snapped to mine as she looked for any teasing in the amber irises. I knew I was treading on thin ice, feeding into Bonnie's doubt, but I couldn't help myself. Maybe it was the fact that Bonnie was an emerging witch and I needed one desperately that made me want her to see the truth. Maybe it was me just being selfish.

"Right about what?"

"About him being dangerous." Bonnie snapped her mouth shut and contemplated the idea, thinking back on whatever vision she had the previous night.

"What did you see that's making you so nervous?" I asked, genuinely curious. Bonnie must have sensed that as she glanced back at her notebook. She turned a couple of the pages before landing on one full of numbers and phrases.

"It was just...dark. I know it sounds crazy, but I'm worried about Elena? Isn't this relationship going too fast?" Bonnie mumbled, biting at her lip as her eyes raked over the page in her notebook.

I knew that what I said next would define Bonnie's future actions towards Stefan and I was more than ready to feed into the suspicion Bonnie had of him to further her own growth as a witch. The necklace was getting too full and my headaches around Stefan had increased tenfold so the prospect of awakening a witch with the possibility of relieving the pain was tempting. But I also knew that such actions wouldn't be all good for everyone else. There was the matter of Elena who, from my understanding, has had probably the worst year of her life. To threaten her new found happiness seemed almost too heartless.

There was also the possibility that Bonnie's family line didn't have any knowledge about the spell my necklace needed and this was all a waste of time.

There was also the fact that I was a being meant to conceal the existence of the supernatural, not expose it even a little bit.

I knew that I would regret it but a decision was made within 5 seconds.

"Yes, we don't know him. But, then again, how are we to make judgements on people we don't even know the first thing about? Elena is probably the only person who's spoken to him for more than a half hour. Just give it some time," I reasoned, watching as her eyes lightened slightly, the doubt disappearing in the green depths. Why did doing the seemingly right thing feel like a knot in my throat? Maybe I was an especially selfish person.

"I just don't want her to get hurt. She's been through enough," Bonnie pressed.

"And that, is what makes you a very good friend," I laughed, pushing slightly at her shoulder to loosen it up. She looked at me gratefully as more students poured into the classroom. Bonnie watched as Stefan and Elena walked in together and gave a hesitant smile to the former. I sent Bonnie an approving look as Mr. Tanner started to take attendance.

"Caroline? Anyone see her this morning?" Mr. Tanner asked. No one was really paying attention but I could see Stefan narrow his eyes at her seat as Bonnie once more checked her phone.

"Well, for those of us here, we will be reviewing for the test on WWII. Anyone know the date that it officially ended? Anyone?" he asked, looking around the room when no one raised their hands.

"Ms. Juan?" he asked a girl. She shook her head as he tsked.

"1945," he said, sounding exceptionally annoyed.

"Psst. fyi, our team sucks they could use you," Elena whispered, though it didn't sound as if she were trying to be quiet.

"Pearl Harbor?" Mr. Tanner asked. Matt leaned over in his chair, listening to Stefan and Elena discuss the football team as the former responded, "Can't, I'm a loner." Elena laughed and turned, half confused, when Mr. Tanner called her name.

"Pearl Harbor?" he asked again. Elena struggled, a blush blooming on her cheeks as the class stared at her before, surprise surprise, Stefan butt in.

"December 7th, 1941." Mr. Tanner looked mildly impressed by Stefan's answer but annoyed that he answered for Elena.

"Thank you, _Ms. Gilbert_. The fall of the Berlin Wall?" Mr. Tanner asked.

"1989. I'm...good with dates sir." What. A. Cheater. It doesn't help that you've _lived_ through all of these events.

"Are you? How good?," Mr. Tanner looked around the room, "Keep it to the year."

"Civil Rights Act."

"1964."

"John F. Kennedy assassination."

"1963."

"Martin Luther King."

"'68."

"Lincoln."

"1865."

"Roe v. Wade."

"1973."

"Brown v. Board."

"1954."

"The Battle of Gettysburg."

"1863."

"Korean War."

"1950 to 1953."

"Ha! It ended in '52," Mr. Tanner said smugly as he walked up to his desk.

"Actually sir, it was '53," Stefan challenged, maintaining eye contact with the teacher. Mr. Tanner, kept his eyes locked on Stefan's ordering the class to look up the answer.

"It was 19...53," one student called out. Mr. Tanner's mouth twisted in distaste as the rest of the class stared at Stefan with admiration. Someone had finally put the arsehole teacher in his place.

Mr. Tanner carried on the lesson without a single interruption or harsh comment. It seemed his ego was too burned for that. The lesson concluded quickly as the bell rang and I shot a wink at Stefan, letting him know I knew _exactly_ how he got all those dates correct. He simply smirked, a feature I hadn't seen him wear yet, and turned to Elena.

The rest of the day passed with it's usual blur as I dreaded what would come after school.

Cheerleading.

I wasn't terribly clumsy but I also didn't feel up to being thrown and tossed in the air by amateur girls. I ended up hiding on the bleachers and found a kindred soul there who didn't want to participate in what we were peer pressured into doing.

"You know, practice is on the field, not the bleachers," I said to Stefan, sitting down next to him. He looked over and saw my own attire and raised an eyebrow.

"I could say the same to you, little miss cheerleader," I winced at the name and smiled sheepishly.

"Practice doesn't start for another five minutes," I defended. Stefan laughed and watched Tyler fail to tackle a running back. We both watched as Mr. Tanner, the coach for the football team it seemed, yelled at Tyler for his failure.

"Go show 'em how it's done history boy," I joked, ready to face the music that was cheer practice. Stefan looked up at me as I stood and shook his head in amusement. We both walked down the bleachers together before parting ways, him walking over to Mr. Tanner, and me walking over to Elena and Bonnie, ready to sign my life away.

I found the two girls stretching on the grass, falling into splits and cartwheels.

Good lord was I doomed.

"Hey! You actually came. I was doubting you for a minute there," Bonnie called, pulling me into a hug. I groaned and plopped onto the ground, stretching out my legs and spreading into a sore split.

"What else am I supposed to do with my life besides cheer on the sucky football team," I joked, using the reference Elena made about Mystic Fall's football team.

"I heard you're coming to dinner tonight?" Bonnie asked, looking hopeful. I smiled and went to reply but was interrupted by loud music.

"Uh…" Elena said, jaw hanging open. I knew the presence before I even turned around.

Damon Salvatore.

And who was it that was with him? I'll give you 5 seconds.

Caroline Forbes. Of bloody course.

The blonde leaned over her seat in Damon's Camaro as the two shared a heated kiss. I glared hotly at the vampire, ignoring Caroline as she strutted from his car. Damon caught my eye, tilting his sunglasses down his nose and smirking at me. Angrily, I sent a pulse of energy his way, probably not the best idea seeing as how my abilities were being extremely temperamental, and grinned in sick satisfaction when he winced and grabbed at his temple.

"Must be the mystery guy from the Grill," Bonnie commented as Caroline approached. Elena's eyes narrowed.

"That's not a mystery guy. That's Damon Salvatore," she said, glancing at my cold expression. So maybe Elena finally got the idea that he was an utter arse.

"Salvatore? As in Stefan?" Bonnie asked in shock. Really, what was it with these people? Did they not remember Stefan's interrogation the night before the party when he was asked about his siblings?

"I got the other brother. Hope you don't mind," Caroline said in a somewhat snooty tone, carrying a CD player. I snatched my eyes on the scarf hanging around her neck and looked slyly at Damon. He shrugged his shoulders and pulled out of the parking lot, keeping his eyes on me through the rear window.

"Sorry I'm late girls! I was uh, busy. And what are you doing here, Charlotte?" Caroline asked in mock sweetness. Seems we weren't over that hurdle quite yet.

"Joining the team, of course," I gestured around me. Caroline narrowed her eyes slightly and sent an accusing look towards Bonnie.

"What?" Bonnie asked, not understanding what the big deal was. Caroline shook her head and placed a CD in the radio.

"Nothing. Let's start with the double pike herkey hurdler!" I sent a 'what the fuck' look towards Bonnie who mouthed, 'Just follow me', and scrambled to get into the position everyone else had taken.

I had no time to figure out what the hell Caroline had said before the music was playing and she was counting off numbers. I had, smartly, placed myself in the back away from Caroline's judging eyes and followed the moves Bonnie did. It wasn't too bad, but I had a feeling that this wasn't the worst of what was to come.

Practice wasn't too terrible and Caroline, unfortunately, agreed with Bonnie's sentiment that I would be a good flyer for stunts.

"She's certainly small enough for that. Those moves though...could use some work," Caroline observed as she wrote down God knows what onto her clipboard. Bonnie sent me a sympathetic look as I looked around for Elena who had suspiciously left halfway through practice.

I found her standing behind a sports shed, watching the football practice on the other side of the field. With my heightened vision, I could see Stefan playing the ever perfect role of a wide receiver.

At least Stefan seemed to be having fun with his new role.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDT

I was secretly dreading the dinner at Elena's house tonight and was glad that Alistair was "unavailable" for work related reasons. I really don't think I could handle Al trying to insert himself into the "teen" crowd. And really, watching him completely win over anyone of the opposite sex was just horrifying.

Elena had invited me to come over an hour before 8 to help prepare dinner and I stood outside her door, a box of cookies in my hand, contemplating making some excuse up for why I couldn't come. I never got the chance to entertain the idea because the door was opened and Elena was tugging me inside.

"Had to pull you in before you got cold feet. Where's Alistair?" Elena asked, looking around for his tall figure. I walked into the house, waving at Bonnie before placing the plate of cookies on her table.

"He's working late. Life of a mighty detective," I joked, observing her house. It was warm and pretty, an open floor plan that connected the kitchen to the living room.

"You can take your gloves off," Elena offered. I held my hands tightly together, protectively.

"Ah, my hands are really, uh, sensitive," I tried to explain and mentally slapped myself when her brows furrowed in confusion. Thankfully, Bonnie came to my rescue.

"Who's Alistair?" Bonnie asked, standing behind the counter.

"My brother. He's the reason why we moved here," I nodded, breathing in the sweet smell of the Italian pasta.

"He take up that job with the sheriff?" she asked, pulling plates out of cabinets. I looked at her in surprise, not realizing it was a public thing.

"I didn't realize the whole town knew about that," I laughed and helped set the place mats on the table.

"Er, just gut feeling," Bonnie explained, quickly turning around. I narrowed my eyes and let a grin ease up on my face.

"Any _other_ mysterious premonitions?" I asked. Bonnie sent me a sly look before smiling.

"Last night. Phone commercial. I knew that, that very commercial would come on," Bonnie said. Elena laughed in disbelief and unwrapped the cookies I had brought.

"Oh come on, that commercial is on a constant loop. That's too easy a guess." Bonnie seemed to search her mind slightly before finding another circumstance.

"Fine. How about this? Today, I'm _obsessed_ with numbers. 8, 14, and 22. It's all I've seen all day," Bonnie said seriously, as though the combination of numbers was something ominous.

"Go try for the powerball," I joked. Elena forwarded my notion with a nod of her head and went back to preparing dinner.

"Have you talked to your Grams?" she asked as Bonnie sighed hopelessly.

"She's just gonna say it's because I'm a witch. Like, I don't want to be a witch. Would you want to be a witch?"

"I wouldn't want to be a witch," Elena laughed, pouring the pasta she bought from the supermarket into a ceramic bowl.

"Putting it in a nice bowl isn't fooling anybody," Bonnie mock scolded. Elena looked over into the bowl at the pre made pasta.

"Fooled me," I mumbled, my stomach growling in hunger.

"Something tells me you can always be fooled when it comes to food," Elena said. She was probably right.

"Serving spoons," Elena chanted to herself as she rushed about the kitchen to try and serve the food before 8.

"Middle drawer on your left," Bonnie called out, not even looking over her shoulder. I went up to the drawer she spoke and found the serving spoon right there. I gave Bonnie an impressed look and handed the spoon to Elena, who brushed off the knowledge that Bonnie shouldn't have really known.

"So, you've been to my house a million times," Elena tried explaining. Bonnie rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's it." The doorbell rang loudly at exactly 8:00 and I had to applaud Stefan on his punctuality.

"And that must be Stefan," Elena said, heading towards the door to greet him. Bonnie's eyes filled with panic so I laid a hand on hers, catching her eyes.

"What was that thing we talked about earlier? About giving people a chance?" I reminded her as she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah. Yeah. Yeah," she pushed me off. Her face took on a sudden look of contemplation.

"Give me something to find," she ordered. My mind went blank for a moment before I uttered the first thing that came to mind.

"Paperclips." Bonnie paid no mind to my words as her hand shot out to the drawer on her left. Paperclips.

I shrugged my shoulders at her as she chuckled to herself.

Stefan and Elena then entered the room as we exchanged pleasantries and soon enough, just as I had guessed, I was stuck in the middle of a very awkward dinner.

Read very awkward.

We each ate, careful not to be too loud in the silence and I found it worse than nails on a chalkboard. Elena decided to be the brave one and tried to break the ice.

"So, did, uh, Mr. Tanner give you a hard time today?" she asked, hoping to strike up conversation.

"Well, he let me on the team. So, I must have done something right," Elena smiled at his success at football and turned her happy gaze to Bonnie, who seemed to be falling in herself.

"Bonnie, you should have seen Stefan today. Charlotte too actually. Tyler threw a ball right at him and-"

"Ah, yeah. I heard," Bonnie said dryly. I sent her a look and she gulped, realizing she wasn't doing the whole "get to know" Stefan plan great.

"But I heard it was pretty cool," she added to soften the blow of her previous statement. Elena sent me a thankful look and smiled again. Stefan stared between the three of us before Elena seemed to have come up with another topic of discussion.

"So, Bonnie, why don't you tell Stefan and Charlotte more about your family," Elena began, taking a sip of her soda.

"Parents divorced. No mom. Live with my dad," Bonnie summarized. This time is was Elena's turn to send her a look.

"I was talking about the witches," Elena reiterated. This caused me to sit up slightly in my seat. There was too much to gain by learning about Bonnie's heritage. Any major witch bloodline was bound to have a book of shadows with the spell I needed.

There was still that part of me, the darker part, that didn't want to know whose bloodline Bonnie was from because I knew that if there was even a chance that her family knew anything, I would jump on exposing her to the truth immediately.

Stefan seemed just as interested as his head snapped over to Elena's when she mentioned Bonnie's family.

"Witches?" he asked, genuinely interested.

"Yeah. Bonnie's family has a lineage of witches. It's really cool," Elena directed her last statement to Bonnie with a firm stare.

"Cool isn't the word I'd use," Bonnie glared. I could tell she was worried that Stefan would make fun of her for her "witch lineage" but she seemed taken aback when Stefan showed his knowledge on the subject.

"Well it's certainly interesting. I'm not too versed but I know that there's a history of celtic druids that migrated here during the 1800s," Stefan started. This seemed to be the right thing to say as Bonnie kept her gaze on Stefan's, intrigued.

"My family came by way of Salem." Salem huh? Damn it. Of course her family was from _Salem_ of all places. Nearly all families from Salem were of strong blood.

The ugly side of me reared its head, whispering a dark, _told you so_. I jerked my head slightly, ridding any thoughts from my head and focusing back on the conversation for information.

"Really?" Stefan asked interested. Bonnie nodded, not used to someone showing so much appeal to the witch discussion.

"I would say that's pretty cool," Stefan turned towards Elena, who nodded, happy that the ice had been broken between the two.

"I'd have to agree," I muttered, impressed. To think, the next generation of Salem witches resided in the little unknown town of Mystic Falls.

To think I let an opportunity like this pass because I wanted to be _nice_ of all things.

I quickly reared my head back, looking at the ceiling in shock. Since when did such thoughts slither into my brain? My eyes shot down to the necklace laying innocently on my collarbones. Perhaps a ... _vacation_ of sorts was needed to get me back on track. I turned my head back towards the other three and pushed myself back into the conversation.

"Really? Why?" Bonnie asked, laughing slightly. I gave Stefan a nod and turned back towards my meal. It seemed Stefan had more knowledge on these witches than I did, seeing as how he was probably neighbors with them way back when.

"Salem witches are...heroic examples of individualism and nonconformity," Bonnie smiled, seeing Stefan in a different light.

"Yeah. They are." Both turned back to their meal as Elena started discussing the homecoming game that would be coming up before the telltale pounding of my head alerted me to certain doom.

Damon.

It was then that the doorbell rang and I hurriedly stood up, locking eyes with Stefan who knew just who it was at the door.

"I'll get it. You guys eat," I offered, placing the napkin that was on my lap on the table and rushing to the door before they could. And what do you know?

"Charlotte? What are you doing here?" Caroline asked, holding what looked like a pie in her hands, Damon leaning slightly behind her. I smiled sharply and glared at Damon, not hiding my disgust.

"Welcome to the neighborhood party. Elena figured you were too busy with your...boyfriend to attend," I said bitingly. I really shouldn't have been snapping at Caroline because it truly wasn't her fault. But I really couldn't stand her attitude sometimes. The leaking of energy from the necklace, as I began to deduce, was putting me on edge and I could feel the polite mask cracking with Damon's arrogant presence.

"We _finally_ found the time and brought dessert," Damon wrapped his arms around Caroline's and tilted the pie towards me.

"Ah, too bad. I already brought some. Maybe another time," I tried pushing the door closed but Caroline was having none of it and barged through, brushing past me. Damon turned his stare to me and looked pointedly over my shoulder to Elena, who had heard the commotion and came to see what was going on.

"Who is that?" she asked, looking from Caroline to the door.

"Just Caroline and a pest. You know how pests can be. Just gotta spray a little disinfectant and they all go away," I smiled sweetly, glaring at Damon who smiled sweetly, fakely, my way.

"What are you doing? Come in," Caroline ordered Damon when he stayed in place. Stefan rounded the corner from the kitchen and found Damon standing in the doorway. I locked my eyes with his and shook my head with a subtle 'no'. Stefan nodded and he turned his gaze to his brother's.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan asked, not bothering to beat around the bush.

"Waiting for Elena to invite me in. Didn't you hear? We brought dessert," Damon gestured to Elena, pointing at the pie in her hands.

"And didn't you hear? We already have dessert," I argued, garnering his attention.

"Like what?"

"Cookies."

"Hardly a dessert. More like a party favor."

"And what did you bring?"

"Apple pie."

"This is a casual dinner not Thanksgiving."

"For such a casual dinner, it seems awfully hard to get in."

"Maybe because _you_ weren't invited."

"I believe this isn't your house."

"I happen to be an _invited_ guest."

"So am I."

"Really? Because I don't recall Elena giving you the memo about tonight's dinner."

"Er, guys?" Elena interrupted, glancing between the two of us. I found that our faces had gotten awfully close in our back and forth banter and I quickly jumped back, watching Damon smirk my way.

"Listen, it's really no trouble. Please come-"

"No, no, no," Stefan interrupted hurriedly. Watching Damon smirk as Elena sent Stefan a confused look.

"He, uh. He can't stay. Can you Damon?" Damon sent an amused look Stefan's way and I somehow knew that Damon would find his way into Elena's house, one way or another.

"Get in here," Caroline demanded, watching the scuffle, glaring my way after seeing how close Damon and I had gotten in our banter.

"We were just finishing…" Stefan trailed off, begging Elena with his eyes to decline Damon's request.

Some things were not to be.

"It's fine. No offense but I'm craving Apple Pie. Come in Damon," she smiled moving out of the way so that he could pass her. He looked at the frame of the front door, smirking at Stefan and I as he passed. Elena sent us both confused looks, mouthing 'what' as Damon glanced around the entrance.

"You have a beautiful home, Elena," Damon complimented. Elena breathed in deeply at the tension in the room and responded with a polite, "Thank you." Damon taunted both Stefan and I with a knowing smile and welcomed himself into Elena's home.

Why was this whole never having a dull day becoming a sort of pattern? And to think I was growing bored of dull days.

Bonnie seemed shocked by Damon and Caroline's unexpected visit but took it all in stride, taking a piece of Apple Pie. Feeling aggravated, I volunteered to make coffee to go with the pie and my cookies so as to get away from the irritating vampire. When I walked back into the room, Caroline was, once again, interrogating Stefan, asking him about his football experience earlier that day.

"I can _not_ believe Mr. Tanner let you on the team. Oh, Tyler must be _seething_. But good for you. Go for it" Caroline giggled. She was perched on Damon's lap, another scarf tied carefully around her neck as she sat more comfortably on the couch. She looked like a pet at Damon's feet with a collar wrapped around her neck.

My lips curled in great distaste.

I passed around mugs of coffee to Elena, Caroline, Bonnie, and begrudgingly, Damon before taking a seat on one of the chairs in the sitting room.

"That's what I always tell him. You have to engage, put yourself out there. You can't just sit there and wait for life to come to _you_. You have to take hold of it yourself," Damon spoke, his voice deceivingly passionate.

"Yeah. Elena wasn't so lucky today. I mean I can excuse Charlotte because it seems she hasn't done a bit of physical work in her life, but with the drama over the spring, she missed summer practices and all," Caroline said, not seeing the hurt flash across Elena's face at the mention of her parents. I sent a glare towards Caroline in response as Bonnie jumped to defend Elena.

"I'll work with her. She'll get it. And Char is new but she has potential to be a flyer." Caroline rolled her eyes and laughed, eyeing my figure from her seat across from me.

"It's probably because of her height. Her unfortunate lack of stature should be perfect for stunting," I sputtered slightly, wondering where Caroline felt it necessary to pick fun at me so blatantly before she continued, "As for Elena, well, she could do well in the back…" Caroline trailed off, thinking out loud. Elena sent a murderous glare her way and tightened her grip on the mug in her lap.

"You don't seem like the cheerleading type, Elena," Damon commented lowly, catching the girl's eyes. I scoffed under my breath and took a sip from my coffee.

"And I do?" I muttered to myself, watching Stefan's eyes glint with slight amusement. Elena smiled in embarrassment and reddened even more as Caroline spoke.

"Oh it's just because her parents died. She used to be _way_ more fun," Caroline laughed, only just noticing the glares Bonnie and I sent her way.

"And I say that with complete sensitivity," Caroline whispered. I rolled my eyes, wishing I was anywhere but here where all I could see was Caroline acting like an obedient doll at Damon's beck and call. Huh, I rhymed. Is that what I've been reduced to?

"I'm sorry, Elena. I know what it's like to lose both of your parents," I'm sure, "In fact, Stefan and I have watched everyone we've ever cared about die," Damon finished.

Silence.

"Ah, I'm _sure_ that's a bit of an exaggeration," it wasn't, "I mean you haven't lived _that_ long," nope you probably have. Stefan looked my way and sent a thankful look but by the movement coming from Damon's mouth, I knew his thanks were too early.

"Oh but it's true. Then again, I really don't want to bring up _her_ ," Damon winced as the entire room turned towards him. Stefan and Elena looked away from each other as Bonnie switched her eyes back and forth between the two.

" _Her_?" she asked. Damon went to answer but I was quick to intervene, tired of the petty comments that Damon felt necessary to put out.

"Just an ex girlfriend, right Stefan?" I asked. Stefan nodded his head and Elena watched Damon from the corner of her eye.

"Right."

Silence.

"Well, er, it's getting pretty late, isn't it. We should probably start cleaning up," Elena offered, taking the still full mugs of coffee with her. Damon was quick to stand up, volunteering to help. Oh, I'm _sure_ he wanted to help. As Damon and Elena left, the room grew quiet as Caroline seemed to lose her voice.

"So, Caroline, when is Char getting a uniform? The game is this Friday," Bonnie started, breaking the silence. Caroline seemed to think it through before turning her eyes to me, the accusatory glimmer dimming from her blue eyes.

"She could come by Mrs. Touie's class tomorrow. She has some extra uniforms in her classroom," Caroline answered. I nodded and the room became quiet again. Bonnie seemed to grow tired of it as she excused herself to help Elena and Damon in the kitchen.

Incredibly awkward.

"So, Stefan, how's this whole, Elena thing going?" Caroline asked, quite bluntly. I choked slightly on my coffee and laughed at Stefan's shocked face. He rubbed at the back of his head, still eyeing Caroline's scarf.

"Er, it's going pretty well. We've only been together for a couple days," Stefan laughed awkwardly. Poor guy.

"And what about you Caroline? Damon seems like quite the catch himself," I butted in, catching Stefan's eyes in hopes that he knew where I was going with this.

"Oh he's perfect, you have no idea. He even bought this scarf for me. Something about first gifts and such," she giggled, fingering the silvery green scarf around her neck. Stefan's eyes tightened slightly as he shifted closer to her from his seat on the couch.

"Can I see it?" I asked, lowering my voice slightly. I could see the indecision in Caroline's eyes as she locked her blue ones with mine. She shook her head slightly and leaned a little bit away from me.

"Er, no," she laughed shakily, tightening the scarf ends around her throat. I dragged my gaze to where I was positive Damon's fang marks would reside and smoothed my voice even more, pushing slightly on her mind.

"Could I please see your scarf?" I asked again, leaning forwards a bit in my seat, my voice low and soothing. I could see the indecision waver slightly in Caroline's eyes as her hands inched towards the loop in her scarf that hid the bite. I could also feel Stefan's eyes on me as he watched Caroline's hands too.

Of course, my life was not easy and so I was not nearly as surprised as I should have been when we were interrupted by the pest of the week.

"And just what are you kids talking about?" Damon interjected, stepping in the space between Caroline and I, breaking the slight connection. I groaned and fell back in my seat as Caroline, once more, became an eager pet at Damon's beck and call.

"Charlotte was just asking about Caroline's scarf," Stefan explained, pointing to the fabric wrapped lightly around Caroline's neck. Damon turned his eyes to me as a way of confirming what Stefan said.

"It's a very lovely color," I added, finishing off my coffee. Damon smiled tightly and moved his own eyes to Caroline's neck before taking both ends of the scarf and tugging the ends so it was once more tight around her neck with the bite hidden underneath.

"Right, well, Elena and Bonnie were just finishing up the dishes. Why don't you go and help them?" Damon offered. Caroline scoffed and looked up at him, humour in her blue eyes.

"Do I look like someone who does dishes?" she asked haughtily. I rolled my eyes and plopped my mug in her empty hands. She gave me an incredulous look and pushed the mug back into my hands as Damon watched the movement slyly.

"For me?" he asked sweetly. As if he could be anything _sweet_.

"Hmmm, I don't think so," she laughed as Stefan joined in awkwardly. I could see the angry irritation in Damon's eyes as he tugged her head towards him in annoyance.

"Go see if Elena needs help in the kitchen and be a good girl and take little Lottie's mug with you when you leave," he compelled, eyes flashing to the mug in my hands. Caroline's eyes brightened slightly as she grabbed the mug from my hands.

"Hey Charlotte, I can take your mug to the kitchen if you want. I'm sure Elena needs help in the kitchen," she giggled, practically skipping out of the room. I followed her movements and could practically see the tension pouring off of both brothers as they stared at each other.

"These are people, Damon. Not puppets. Not toys. Not pets," Stefan stated firmly, a light glare in his green eyes. Damon scoffed and nodded his head towards me.

"Don't you see? I helped out dear Lottie over here with the vampire voodoo," he joked. I nodded slightly in agreement and sat back in my seat, content to watch the two brothers bicker endlessly.

"Caroline doesn't exist for your amusement. She's not someone you can just _feed_ on whenever you want to," Stefan ignored Damon's jest and continued to push the issue. I knew that I should probably be pushing this issue just as fervently as Stefan was, but I knew that any efforts would be in vain. A Sensitive's job was to ensure the secrecy of the supernatural. With our heightened senses, it made it easier to pick out these supernatural creatures and make sure that they were following the code of secrecy. Though Damon was treading in _very_ shallow waters, he hadn't done anything to threaten the vampire secrecy. Caroline was compelled to hide her bites, not reveal them.

Though Damon was an absolute arse, he didn't seem to have any desire to expose his kind.

"Sure she does. They all do. They're whatever I want them to be. _Mine_ for the taking. Even you little Lottie. _Especially_ you," Damon growled slightly at the end, locking his eyes on a particular vein in my neck. I shifted in my seat slightly, moving my hair over that spot, crossing my arms tightly.

"I'd like to see you even _attempt_ it Damon," I muttered, not liking the feeling of being prey to this very powerful predator. Damon smirked and I could see his eyes brighten at the challenge.

Great.

"Okay. You've had your fun. You used Caroline to get to me and Elena. Good for you. Now it's time for you to leave," Stefan finished, not even bothering with being vague. He wanted Damon gone.

"That's really _not_ a problem. I'll leave right now. Because I've been invited in," Damon moved from his spot on the arm of the chair to the cushion directly next to Stefan, "And I'll come back tomorrow night. And the following night. And so on and so forth. And I'll do whatever I _want_ to do with your little...cheerleader. Because that's what's normal to me," Damon stated, lowering his head as his eyes gained a feral look. I sat up straighter in my seat at the threat but somehow, I got the feeling that Damon's threat, while heavy, was not entirely true. Damon was here for something. And while I'm sure he wished to be entertained, he wanted to get whatever it was he came for.

It was then that Elena, Bonnie, and Caroline reentered the room as Damon leapt from his chair to Caroline's side, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"It's getting very late and I'm sure you little children have to wake up early for school tomorrow. We'll just be going," Damon winked, smiling slightly as he and Caroline rushed from the house. Elena looked from the spot the couple was standing to the door in shock as Stefan followed her gaze in concern. No doubt Damon would be, er, _feeding_ tonight.

"I have to get going too. Alistair gets really antsy when I'm not back by 10. I'll see you guys tomorrow," I said, ready to leave. Some dinner party this was. I've come to the conclusion that any social gathering in Mystic Falls always ends in a supernatural disaster.

"I'll help you clean Elena," Bonnie added, already straightening up the couch as Stefan moved to help her.

"Bye Char," all three chorused as I rushed from the house, ready to go home and nurse the headache I had obtained throughout the night.

Just another night in Mystic Falls I guess.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

I am so sorry that this has taken ages to be updated. My life has been a whirlwind of crazy lately and I haven't had the time to do anything. I've been on vacation for the past week and have been through the process of moving homes for the past month. Because school is starting in approximately a week, updates will probably slow down but I'm going to try and make them weekly or nearly weekly updates.

Sorry for the wait and thank you to all that reviewed/favorited/followed. I felt absolutely awful when I saw the notifications and couldn't update.

Until next time, have a wonderful day/afternoon/night.

Moondust Glow.


	8. Chapter 8

"No."

"Oh, come on it's not even bad. You haven't even tried it on yet."

"How much does it cover?"

Bonnie and I, currently standing outside of Mrs. Touie's class after our last class, were having a very intense argument about clothes. Cheerleading clothes.

"Er," Bonnie holds the uniform shirt up to my own torso and looks up and down before replying, "I'm gonna say...a little above the belly button?"

"Hell no." I answer, crossing my arms over that area of my torso. Bonnie gives me an exasperated expression and attempts to shove the clothing into my hands.

"Just wear a turtleneck and some stockings. It's going to be chilly anyway so most girls will be wearing that too. I'll even wear it," Bonnie supports so I sigh, and, like I seem to be doing a lot lately, give in.

"Fine. But it will be a very thick turtleneck," I joke taking the uniform and folding it into the plastic bag it came in. Bonnie just laughed as we both walked down the hall discussing the game the following night.

"You could come over if you want so that I could help you with the uniform and practice a couple moves before the game. Caroline scheduled after school practices too late so we weren't able to get a lot of practice in," Bonnie explained as we walked towards her car. I was still firm in walking home from school, extra exercise and all that, but I almost always walked with either Elena, Bonnie, or the both of them to their cars after class let out.

"That's probably a good idea seeing as all I learned last practice was that I would be the girl standing on top of other girls risking my life for entertainment." Bonnie rolled her eyes and threw her bag into the passenger seat of her car before turning back to me.

"It's really not that bad. Besides the only time you'll probably be doing anything for tomorrow's game is during the halftime routine." she explained, buckling herself into her car after starting the engine and rolling the window down.

"Makes me feel real important," I deadpanned, tightening the strap of the bag on my shoulder. Bonnie just laughed and quickly wrote down what I assumed was her address on a piece of paper in her notebook. She tore the page out and ripped the paper so that all that was left was her address.

"I'm just warning you now that my Grams is a bit...odd? Is that the word to describe her? Just be prepared to have your whole life story told," Bonnie laughed nervously, handing the paper to me.

"I'm sure I'll be able to handle it," I replied. Bonnie seemed skeptical of my words but shrugged it off and leaving the parking lot after saying a quick goodbye. I glanced back down at the address and gave a small smirk.

Salem-witch-bloodline-grandma here I come.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDT

The next morning, after my daily shower routine, was met by nothing but hysterical laughter. Loud, rambunctious laughter. Alistair's laughter.

"AHAHAH. YOU'RE KIDDING!" Alistair practically screamed as he stood hunched over the island counter, struggling to swallow the spoonful of cereal in his mouth. I stood in the archway of the kitchen, cheer uniform in a bag over my shoulder, twitching with irritation.

"Would you st-" I was interrupted by another loud burst of laughter.

"I just-I just can't even imagine, hahaha," he continued to laugh through his words and laid his head against the cool counter as a way of calming himself down.

"Would you just shut up you annoying bastard," I stated bluntly, grabbing an apple from the basket sitting on the same counter Alistair was leaning against.

"I'm sorry it's just too funny. Really. I can't imagine you, little you, as a cheerleader," he laughed again, patting my head lightly. I ducked from under his hand and glared at him as he continued to eat his breakfast.

"You don't have to be so rude. You should be proud that I'm fitting in with popular people like cheerleaders. Isn't that what we're here for?" I asked pointedly, taking a bite from the honey crisp apple in my hands. Alistair rolled his eyes and placed his hands on my shoulders.

"I am very proud, dear 'sister', that you have decided to become a brainwashed bubblegum cheerleader." he patted my shoulders as he said this and went back to eating. I winced slightly as he stated "brainwashed" seeing as how there actually was a cheerleader who was being brainwashed at this very moment.

"We aren't actually related you know," I mumbled around the apple in my mouth and moved to grab a bottle of water from one of the pantry.

"I annoy you like one though," he called out. I rolled my eyes and joined him in leaning against the counter, each of us eating our own food.

"Where are you heading out to so early anyway?" Al asked, catching the time on the microwave and finding to be relatively early.

"I'm going to Bonnie Bennett's house," was all i replied. I could feel Alistair's eyes bore into the side of my head, waiting for me to elaborate.

"Did you know that the Bennett witches are from a bloodline originating from Salem?" I asked, taking a swig of the water bottle. Alistair stiffened slightly and inclined his head towards me, again, waiting for me to elaborate. When I didn't and instead took another bite of my apple, Alistair turned his full body towards me.

"No, actually I didn't. Not that I'm against learning new things but how does this correlate to anything?" Oh Al, you can be so dense sometimes.

"Salem witches are powerful witches. Powerful witches come from long bloodlines of magic. Long bloodlines of magic have very detailed Books of Shadows," I said slowly, waiting for him to catch on. Suddenly his eyes darted to where my locket lay against my collarbones before he made eye contact with me.

"She might…?"

"Yes." Alistair seemed to think for a second before he was practically shoving me out the door.

"Well then what are you still doing here? Go get that necklace cleared before...you know," he rushed, pushing me out of the house and making shooing motions.

"Yeah, love you too, Al," I called out to him.

"Love you too, Char. Be careful tonight," he warned. I nodded sternly and looked at the address Bonnie gave me yesterday.

"2334 Sherwood Forest Court." I stated out loud, pulling out my phone and typing the address into Google Maps. The walk wasn't long, maybe 10 minutes, and I found myself growing nervous as I stood outside of Bonnie's front door. I berated myself for a couple of seconds before steeling my nerves and moving my hand to knock on the front door. However, before I could strike the door with my fist, it was already opening.

In front of me stood a short, even shorter than me, woman with skin akin to Bonnie's and dark curly hair. Her eyes were a warm chocolate and spoke volumes about her knowledge and power. From the telltale pounding in my temple and the green aura surrounding her, I knew this to be Bonnie's grandmother.

"Well, I was certainly wondering when you would show up on my doorstep," the woman commented, looking me up and down before connecting our eyes again. Wary of the woman in front of me, I stepped back slightly and strengthened the shields around my mind.

"Oh?" I asked. Bonnie's grandmother simply smiled but made no move to let me inside the house.

"That necklace sure hasn't been kind to you these past few days has it?" she asked, glancing at the locket. My arm instinctively moved up to touch it lightly, feeling the energy pouring out of it at a rapid pace. I winced slightly and found the witch's eyes turn from guarded to slightly sympathetic.

"Something like that," I answered, pulling my gloved hand away from the jewelry and back to my side, curled around the strap of my bag.

"You may call me Sheila, Sensitive." she stated, her hand reaching towards mine. I bristled slightly at what she called me but figured that she had to have known what I was if she knew about my necklace.

"As long as you call me Charlotte," I replied, making it clear with my firm shake that the knowledge of what I was, was to stay strictly between us. Sheila seemed to understand that as resolve hardened her eyes slightly. Our staring was interrupted by Bonnie, who rounded the corner and sighed as she noticed my hand held in a shake with Sheila's.

"Char, hey. You can come in. My room is just down the hall." Bonnie sent a worried glance between her grandmother and myself before ushering me in. I caught Sheila's eyes over Bonnie's shoulder and gave a discreet nod. Bonnie led me from the entrance of her home, through the living space, and down a hallway to where her own room was.

The room was warm in aura and gave off a very Earthy feel. Definitely witchy.

"She didn't, er, bother you did she? She didn't say anything weird or intrusive right?" Bonnie asked nervously, pulling at the ponytail her hair was in.

"I wouldn't call it intrusive," I stated calmly. Bonnie seemed to deflate in front of me and groaned into her hands as she covered her face.

"How bad was it? I'm so sorry. I always tell her to keep her mouth shut about this stuff but she never listens. God, this is so embarrassing-"

"Bonnie, it's fine. I was just kidding. You actually came in the room right as your Grams opened the door," I reassured, watching as her eyes narrowed at the joke. She sighed in relief and flopped back onto her bed, wrinkling the uniform laid neatly on the comforter.

"Well, I'll apologize now for anything that she may say in the future," Bonnie laughed, sitting up and examining the uniform her body had created wrinkles in. She groaned again and smoothed her hand furiously over the fabric.

"Anyway, did you bring everything?" Bonnie asked, holding the uniform top in front of her, satisfied that the fabric was once more smooth. I reached into the bag on my shoulder and pulled out the skirt, shirt, and turtleneck. Stockings, lollipops, ankle socks, and a pair of white sneakers were also stashed inside of the gym back next to a brush and a ribbon for my hair.

"Got everything right here," I placed the uniform down on the bed in a fashion similar to Bonnie's and scowled once more at the short top and skirt.

"Great. I'll help you get changed. The top confused me the first time I used it," Bonnie reached for my uniform top but I was quick to grab it before her.

"Er, that's alright. I have to put the turtleneck underneath anyway," I explained, digging through my bag before finding the black turtleneck I had packed. Bonnie seemed startled by my abruptness kept her eyes on me for a few seconds before shrugging and turning to her own top and skirt. I quickly turned my back to her and tried to, as fast as I could, pull of the grey t-shirt I was already wearing for the black turtleneck. I was quick in tugging the shirt on but not soon enough as I felt Bonnie's gaze land on the back of my waist.

Damn it.

"Charlotte...those scars on your face. Where did you get them?" she asked, eyes shifting from the scar along the curve of my waist to the small, lilac scars hardly noticeable on my face. I stiffened slightly at the question and felt the phantom pains of where the scars were. I rubbed slightly at my side and kept my back to Bonnie,

"I just-er. I had small little accidents when I was little," I stated lamely. And it was absolutely and completely lame. Not too far from the truth but lame anyway.

"I'm sorry. For asking about it," Bonnie apologized, awkwardly shuffling her feet against the rug and tugging at her crop top. I shook my head and smiled slightly, catching her eyes over my shoulder.

"Thanks but it's been awhile since then. I just tend to forget that they're there. You guys do a good job of making me forget," I explained, reaching for the stockings and lollipops in my bag and stripping off my jeans. I pulled the denim off and tugged the stockings and maroon lollipops on quickly before reaching for the uniform skirt, tugging that over as well.

"How's that?" Bonnie asked quietly, tugging her own skirt on. I turned completely around, holding the cheer top.

"By not staring." I said simply, gesturing the top towards her. Bonnie smiled and came over, helping me pull the shirt over, adjusting it slightly to work with the turtleneck underneath.

"They're not super noticeable. You can only really see them when you're up close or in certain lighting." Bonnie observed. I smiled slightly and moved towards the mirror on her vanity.

"Well doesn't that just make me feel amazing," I joked, gathering my thick hair in my hands and using a brush to smooth the sides as I pulled it into a high ponytail. I secured the hair and reached over for the black ribbon in my bag, tying a perfect bow over the hair tie. I nodded and turned back towards Bonnie.

"How do I look?" I did a few poses before laughing as Bonnie took on a mock serious expression.

"Positively spirited," she replied before moving to the mirror to fix her own hair. I sat down on her bed and reached over for the ankle socks and white sneakers, securing each shoe to my foot. Bonnie finished with her hair and turned back to me, her face stoic and serious.

"Are you ready, to kick some Central Lion ass?" Bonnie asked, still completely serious. I tried my hardest not to burst out in laughter but failed and soon the both of us were giggling as we stumbled out of her room.

"We're going Grams!" Bonnie yelled. Sheila leaned against an arch that connected the living room and the kitchen, eyeing our uniforms and easy grins.

"Be careful girls," was all she said before she retired back to the kitchen to what smelled like dinner. I followed Sheila's movement and found Bonnie staring after her as well. Bonnie shook her head and turned her smiling face back towards me.

"Come on. We didn't have time to go over any routines but I'm sure Caroline is going to be doing some warm ups before the game," Bonnie announced, leading the way towards her car. We both got into the vehicle and started the short drive to the high school. The ride was mostly comfortable silence as the radio hummed in the background.

By the time we reached the school parking lot, students began pulling in with their music blasting as the tailgate carried on. Living in London, I had kept mostly to myself and kept others at a distance, not prepared for the closeness I knew would come with becoming friends with someone. That being said, the scene in front of me was something that I only really saw in television shows or movies. Bonnie seemed to catch onto this as she turned her gaze from the road to me, humor lacing her eyes.

"Have you ever been to a football game before?" she asked, pulling into a parking spot.

"I can honestly say that I have not," I laughed giddily, growing excited for the night to come, "I never really talked to anyone back in England so I never had the chance to do anything like this before." Bonnie looked back up at me somewhat sadly and placed a hand on my gloved one. I sent a prayer to the Lord above that I had decided to go with the turtleneck after all. The effects of Bonnie or anyone touching my bare skin with the way my necklace was behaving.

"Well, you have us now. Me, Elena, Matt, Caroline, even...even Stefan." Bonnie stated. I could feel my eyes widening at the passion that she spoke with and smiled in response.

"Stefan, eh?" I asked teasingly.

"Okay so maybe you were right," actually I was completely wrong, you're the right one, "Stefan is actually a really good guy and Grams is just...psyching me out." Bonnie laughed seemingly at herself. I leaned over and caught her eyes before smiling comfortingly at her.

"Hey now don't rule those instincts out just yet. Trust them until they give you a reason to not to," I said before turning back to the very large crowd that was the student parking lot.

"So...ready to, as you so eloquently said, 'kick some Central Lion ass'?" I asked with as much seriousness as I could muster. Bonnie bursted out in laughter in less than a second before jumping from her car and walking towards the larger crowd of people near the entrance to the field where I could now see Caroline standing with the rest of the squad and, no surprise, Damon was next to her, an arm wrapped tightly around her waist.

Wonderful.

"Hey Caroline," Bonnie greeted, catching the girl's attention as we approached. Caroline turned and smiled at the two of us. Said smile faded as she eyed my attire.

"Er, Charlotte what's with the thick sweater? Stockings? Gloves? We're cheerleaders not nuns," Caroline laughed, hanging off of the leather clad arm of the vampire next to her. I looked down at my outfit, frowning slightly. I turned my eyes up to Bonnie in question as she sent a light glare the blonde's way.

"She wasn't comfortable with how short it was so I said she could wear a turtleneck underneath. Besides it's going to be chilly tonight so I thought it was fine," Bonnie explained, crossing her arms as a chilly wind blew by.

"Well, the gloves really aren't necessary. We need her hands free so that the rest of the squad has a better hold on her hands," Caroline explained, gesturing to the thick leather gloves covering my hands. My insides clenched at the possibility that I would have to take off the one article that was near essential. I could feel my eyes tighten slightly and sensed Damon watching my figure curiously, wondering himself why I wore the gloves. I met his gaze as Caroline and Bonnie argued over it and he seemed to find the answer. He smirked slightly and tapped his temple slightly. I tilted my head a fraction in confusion and watched as he tugged Caroline to look in his direction.

"Caroline, sweetheart, surely as Lottie's friend, you would want her to be as comfortable as possible, no?" he asked sweetly, compellingly. My eyes narrowed in suspicion at his words. What did he have to gain by helping me out?

Oh.

Of course.

He would have a favor from me.

"Ah, Caroline it's really okay. You're right. The turtleneck looks a little out of place but the gloves are just way too much," I stated hurriedly before Damon could fully compel Caroline. Gloveless hands be damned I was not going to be in the debt of this homicidal vampire.

"Oh but Charlotte, I want you to be comfortable on your first day as a cheerleader," Caroline sympathized as Damon's convincing aura influenced her own thoughts. Desperate, I pushed my own mind against hers, fighting the compelling presence that Damon left on her mind, and fought to free her from him.

"It's fine. Really. Nothing worse than inconsistencies in fashion right?" I asked desperately. I could feel Bonnie's confused gaze as she tried to understand what was going on and kept my eyes away from Damon who was smirking in amusement. All hopes of being debtless were gone as he tugged Caroline towards him, catching his blue eyes with hers.

"Little Lottie is just being modest. Those gloves are everything to her. Just let her wear them, yeah?" he asked, read compelled. I groaned into my hand and glared at the creature in front of me.

"Er, Charlotte. Are you okay?" Bonnie asked as she looked from Caroline to Damon to me. I nodded and sent a glare towards Damon as Caroline vehemently demanded I keep my gloves on.

"Just peachy," was all I replied with as I looked around the area for Elena, knowing she was part of the squad too.

"You girls go and start stretching. I'm gonna go find Elena," Caroline stated, tugging Damon by his jacket with her as he tugged back.

"I'm going to head to the snack bar really quick. I've been really craving a hot pretzel," Damon winked and sauntered off in a direction completely opposite from the snack bar.

"Typical," I stated as Caroline skipped off to find Elena. Bonnie merely shrugged as we joined the other girls stretching on the field. There were around 10 other girls sprawled around the area as Bonnie and I approached.

"What was that about?" Bonnie asked. I shook my head and sent her a convincing smile.

"Nothing."

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVD

Warm ups were terrifying as ever but nothing could compare to the little pep rally behind the bleachers as Mr. Tanner screamed into a microphone. A teepee like structure made of branches sat on the middle, burning with the opponent's team mascot. I deadpanned at the lack of order over the rowdy teenagers, drunk rowdy teenagers.

"Wait wait wait wait wait wait wait. Wait. Now let's be honest here, in the past, we used to let other teams come into our town and roll right over us!" he yelled. I stood next to an excited Caroline and looked around for Damon who I knew was creating trouble. I could see Stefan standing awkwardly with the rest of the football players and laughed at the uncomfortable expression on his face as Mr. Tanner brought him into the spotlight.

"But that is about to change! We've got some great new talent tonight starting on offense and I'm going to tell you right now, it's been a long time since I have see a kid like this with hands like these. Let's give it up for Stefan Salvatore!" Stefan smiled sheepishly as the crowd cheered. I watched as Tyler Lockwood rolled his eyes and glared at Stefan in jealousy.

"This blows. He can't start the guy, he just got here," Tyler complained to Matt as the cheer continued to cheer for Stefan. My eyes narrowed slightly as I tried to keep up with the whole cheerleading act. I mean, I only did this for Elena and Bonnie and Elena wasn't even here! Did they honestly think I wanted to be thrown about in the air? Tanner continued on his rant as the crowd cheered in spirit but their loud screams became deaf in my ears as I heard a whole other commotion occurring just outside the large circle of students.

Tyler Lockwood. Jeremy Gilbert. Fighting. And now the entire school is watching.

Fantastic.

"Tyler! Hey, Tyler stop it!"

"Stop, you're hurting him!" Vicki Donovan screamed. I moved to intervene but was pushed back as more students began to crowd around the two boys. God damn the genes for vertical defectiveness. I could hear the grunting of the two boys as fists slamming against skin met my ears in a bloody roar. Just as I pushed through the crowd, Stefan arrived, taking the punch from Tyler like a pro before having his hand sliced open by a crazed Jeremy.

Well. Just how much bad luck could a girl get?

"Separate. Separate now. Stefan come with me, I have bandages in the car," I hurried over to Stefan just as Elena ran over to look at his hand. Stefan gave me a knowing look and tried to keep the cut, or lack thereof, away from her line of sight.

"Stefan? Stefan are you okay? Your hand…" Elena trailed off as she tried to reach for it. I jogged over quickly and put my hand around his, hiding it. Elena, however, persisted and I was left with only one other option.

"Elena? Hey, his hand is fine, really. I just need to get him to my car so that I can bandage it up. I think Jeremy really needs help though. Tyler got him pretty good. There should be ice at the snack bar for his lip. We'll be right back," I tried convincing her as I turned her attention to her brother who was bleeding profusely from his mouth and nose. She nodded and looked once more at Stefan's blood filled hand.

"It's alright, Elena. It's almost kick off so I'll see you. After the game," Stefan added, smiling comfortingly at her. Elena nodded once more before reaching around to hug him, avoiding his bad arm.

"Right, yeah. Good luck," she finished quickly before heading to the snackbar to get ice for her brother. Stefan turned to me as we left the area and rubbed at his face with his free hand. I quickly opened Bonnie's car and tore through the car, trying to find a first aid kit.

"Thank you. For that," Stefan broke the silence as I continued to look around Bonnie's car.

"No thanks needed. It's my job. Now, just how serious are you about keeping your secret from Elena?" I asked, watching him try to keep the blood from dripping over his clothes.

"Quite serious," Stefan answered as he looked at my bag cautiously, "Why?" I sighed and dug out my bottle of vervain, finding the pocket knife I kept in the one pocket. I put the two objects next to each other and gave Stefan a look. Of course, being the most oblivious vampire to exist, he did not understand what I was trying to say.

"Jesus, for someone who's lived for decades you're pretty oblivious," I said, smirking at his offended face. He went to reply but I held up a and to stop him.

"This is to make your gash become, well, real," I explained, taking his hand in mine as he looked at the vervain and knife warily before having an epiphany.

"No. No way," Stefan protested, pulling his hand from mine. I pouted and crossed my arms.

"Well, how exactly do you plan on explaining where your cut went to Elena, hm?" I asked as Stefan sighed in defeat. He nodded his head and hesitantly held his hand out to me. I smiled in thanks and took it gently, dipping the dagger in the bottle of vervain before locking eyes with Stefan once more. He nodded, steeling himself for the pain, before looking at his palm. I took the blade and dug it into his palm, watching him wince as the vervain burned through his skin and blood. I dipped my gloved finger slightly into the bottle, rubbing the herb into the wound. Stefan winced once more and growled slightly as it burned. As the wound refused to heal and continued to bleed, I took a piece of gauze and wrapped it around the wound, watching as the blood creating a pattern that matched that of the blade.

"Now, as your doctor, I advise applying this small vial of vervain onto the wound periodically for about a week, wrapping it completely with gauze each time," I joked, pushing my small bottle of vervain into his jacket before packing up the first aid kit. He made a face and cringed as the fabric in the gauze brushed against his wound.

"Yeah, thanks Dr. Morgan I'll be sure to follow your directions to a T," Stefan rolled his eyes, tucking the vervain in his pocket before flexing his hand.

"Yeah, yeah. Now get out there loverboy. Win the heart of the beautiful damsel with your sportsmanship," I mocked, saluting him in a joking matter. Stefan laughed slightly as he waited for me to lock Bonnie's car. We walked towards the field together, exchanging jokes about him being a closet vampire before Matt ran into the both of us from around the snack bar.

"Oh, hey Stefan, Charlotte. I think Caroline's looking for you. Something about needing her midget for the stunts," Matt laughed, rubbing at his blonde hair. He turned to Stefan and his expression cooled slightly to admiration.

"Uh, what you did back there… you had Jeremy's back," Matt said, somewhat humbly, his blue eyes a sign of clear kindness.

"Ah, he's a messed up kid. Someone's gotta look out for him," Stefan answered somewhat awkwardly, looking around the field. I smiled, watching the exchange pleased as Stefan began to fit in with the high school life.

"Yeah. Um, this week at practice I was a dick," Matt started, looking shamefully at the ground before meeting Stefan's eyes.

"Had your reasons," Stefan replied resolutely, waving it off. However, Matt shook his head answering, "No excuse," before looking down, holding his hand out for Stefan to shake.

"Good luck tonight. We're lucky to have you," Matt finished before turning around and walking towards the field. I smiled and pat Stefan's back as a bright happiness erupted in his green eyes.

What. A. Cutie. Pie.

"Isn't it nice to not be a social outcast?" I asked. Stefan smiled and turned towards the field as well before a cooling sensation spread through my eyes. I analyzed the aura in seconds and knew who it was.

"Damon," I said quietly before a slow clap reached our ears. Stefan whirled around and turned his eyes to me, cautiously curious.

"How did-"

"Yes, our dear Lottie is just full of surprises, isn't she?" Damon asked sarcastically, leveling Stefan with a mocking smile. Stefan turned towards me again, caution growing in his gaze. I stood defensively, sensing something bad was going to happen as the tension grew between the two brothers.

"And aren't you just fitting in swimmingly, dear brother? Stefan joins the team, makes a friend," and here is where I start laughing. Damon, though dangerous and a bit of an arse, was actually very funny when he wanted to be.

"It's all so, how would you put it Lottie? 'Rah rah go team! Yeah!'" Damon fist pumped the air as Stefan sighed in defeat. He shook his head and gestured for me to follow him towards the field.

"Not tonight. I'm done with you," Stefan said with an air of finality. I eyed Damon curiously as his aura flared in irritation and anger. Anger at the fact that Stefan was pushing him aside and not giving into the game.

Interesting.

As we turned to leave, Damon vanished from his place against the brick wall and appeared before us. He smirk spoke mischief but I knew there was a very real danger lurking in his cold, blue eyes.

"Nice trick with Elena," he began and I turned my gaze to him sharply. Sensing this, Damon turned his mocking eyes to me and smirked wider.

"Let me guess-vervain in the necklace?" there was a pause as Stefan refused to give the answer to Damon's question and as I stared at him incredulously. I eyed the bottle of vervain that I put in his jacket before snatching it quickly. Stefan turned to me confused before his eyes widened at the bottle in my hand. Vervain was incredibly hard to come by these days due to the fact that the old vampire hysteria died out long ago. Even the smallest bit was valuable, and to think Stefan had his own supply.

"Guess I'll be taking this back then," I grumbled, pocketing the bottle as Damon looked between us curiously.

"I was just lending a hand in the uphold of the great mystery that is Stefan Salvatore and it turns out he has his own supply. Last time I help anyone," I tsked as Damon gave me a look before turning back to his brother.

"Seems you've taken myself and dearest Lottie by surprise, Steffy. A good surprise though, really, it's been awhile since someone has resisted my...compulsion," Damon gave a small quirk of his eyebrows before bending down to wrap a strong arm around my shoulders.

"Of course, we can't forget the lovely Lottie who can do that all on her own. Right?" he said, squeezing tightly, nearly causing my shoulder to pop right out. Stefan looked at me, slightly surprised and looked curiously at Damon. So, it seems Damon knows more about me than what was originally thought.

Fantastic.

"What-"

"Oh, enough about her. Can't you see the attention makes her uncomfortable? Besides, all secrets are revealed in due time. Back to the original topic. Elena," Damon continued to speak, steering me around when Stefan began to walk away. I gave Stefan a betrayed look when he made no move to help free me as he continued to walk away. Using my energy to hurt Damon would hardly work with the lack of control I had at the moment so I momentarily stuck to this psychopath's side until an angel from the high heavens saved me.

"You know, I could just seduce her the old fashioned way. Or, I could just...eat her," Damon taunted, waiting for Stefan's reaction. I began to silently pray that Stefan would continue with his stubbornness to not give in. Damon was playing right into Stefan's weaknesses and nothing good would come by getting angry over a meaningless threat. Well, meaningless to me anyway. I was the only one who could see the lightheartedness in Damon's aura so I knew that he was only trying to bait his brother. Stefan on the other hand...

"No," good Stefan, don't give in, "You're not going to hurt her, Damon," and that ship has sailed. Growing bored of the back and forth, I looked around the area surrounding us. My eyes caught a newspaper lying a couple feet away. Curious, I read the headline, "Jackson Miller: Suspect in Double Homicide". Some people these days, Jesus.

"No?" Damon asked looking at the ground and, subsequently at me. I quirked an eyebrow and wondered what he was playing at exactly. I knew he was here for something, something that involved his brother somehow. The "what" part of the question was as invisible as ever.

"There is a part of you, that feels for her. I was worried that you had no humanity left inside you, that you became the monster, that you pretend to be," Stefan walked closer to us, dangerously close, and began to taunt Damon back. Bad move. Very bad move, Stefan. I tried to catch his eyes to tell him to stop but he kept going.

"Who's pretending?" Damon asked as Stefan stopped a foot away from us.

"Then kill me,"

"Well, I'm-I'm tempted," Damon clenched his jaw, smiling at the prospect. There was a part of him, though, that I could see was only saying this for the game. A very small part but a part nonetheless.

"You're not. You've had lifetimes to do it and yet, here I am, still alive. And there you are, still haunting me," Damon's lips tightened a fraction as the hold on my shoulder became borderline unbearable. Worried, I tried getting Stefan's attention by brushing his mind with my own but it only backfired as the energy whiplashed onto me, making me fall back slightly into Damon's arm. He glanced down slightly, eyes curious before his attention was taken once more by Stefan who, like the absolute idiot I've found he is, continued with his rant.

"After 145 years, Katherine, is dead. And you hate me, because you loved her. And you torture me, because you still do. And that, my brother, is your humanity," Stefan finished as I felt Damon take several deep breaths, his aura lashing out in anger.

"Idiot," I mumbled, looking down at the ground in disappointment. Both brothers turned to me in confusion before another voice broke through the tension like a knife.

"Salvatore!" the voice belonged to Mr. Tanner, who, I'm sure was looking for his best player on the field. I tensed slightly as Damon followed the voice, smirk forming across his lips as any memory of the past disappeared from his eyes. He moved to approach the teacher but I grabbed the hand that had been previously gripping my shoulder and kept him from leaving. Damon gave me a look as the teacher continued talking.

"What the hell? We've got a game to play," the teacher yelled as he approached us, hands waving about in the air. Damon shrugged off my hand and turned to Stefan, whose smug smiled was replaced by horror.

"If that's my humanity...than what's this?" Damon asked before blurring over to the confused teacher, ripping into his throat cavity. I shook my head, not all that surprised as Stefan shouted, "No!". The ripping of the arteries and tendons in the teacher's neck made me slightly nauseous as Damon turned around, red veins, fangs and a mouth full of blood leaking over his chin.

"Anyone. Any time. Any place," He smirked before returning to the teacher, pulling a couple more mouthfuls of blood. Stefan gazed on in horror as Damon gave us one last sarcastic smile before disappearing again. There was silence for a couple of seconds before Stefan turned to me, guilt shining in his eyes. I held a hand up to stop any words of apology that might have left his mouth and turned to the teacher.

"This is going to be hard to frame," I said. Stefan turned to me, probably confused at the random thought.

"Sorry?" he asked looking around the area for any witnesses. Lo and behold there were none.

"I mean we can't leave him here. And we can't let anyone suspect anything about you guys. Hence, it is going to be hard to frame someone for this". Thankfully, I had kept my bag on me from Bonnie's car so all the things I would need to accomplish this were on my person. Stefan watched as I pulled a knife from the pocket of my bag.

"Have you hear of Jackson Miller?" I asked. Stefan started slightly and looked at me like I was crazy.

"Can't say I have, 'Lottie'," he said, irritated as he spat out the nickname Damon gave me. I rolled my eyes in response and kicked over the paper I had read earlier. Stefan picked it up and began to read.

"Jackson Miller, living about 15 minutes away from the wonderful town of Mystic Falls, is wanted for the double homicide of John and Mary Watson. His victims were killed by slashing to the throat where they bled to death. How likely is it that Mr. Miller fled from his home to the backwater town of Mystic Falls where he, found out by Mr. Tanner, killed the poor teacher in an attempt to escape? Very likely once I'm done," I explained as I examined the wound Damon created.

"Bloody hell, your brother is one messy eater, that's for sure," I complained as the I tried to figure out a way to make the gash in his throat appear to be made by a serrated knife. Stefan stared at me incredulously as he watched me push and pull at the wound.

"Seriously? This is your reaction to what just happened? How did you even read that newspaper in the time that we've been here?" Stefan scolded slightly, eyebrows furrowing as he approached myself and the body. I sighed and turned towards him.

"Because, it's my job. My job is to keep the barrier between the supernatural and the outside world maintained. You're brother, by the way is making my job very hard," I answered, deciding that I would need to cut deeper into the man's throat to create the appropriate wound. I took the knife and angled it, pulling it across the teacher's neck, creating a wound that went from the area under his right ear to his left. I heard Stefan's stunned gasp as I dug my hand into the wound, spreading it wide enough so that the bite marks Damon made were no longer distinguishable as such. Satisfied, I glanced down at my hands in irritation. My favorite gloves were destroyed.

"I-" Stefan started and then stopped, not really knowing what to say. I listened for the cheers of the students on the bleachers turned back to Stefan.

"You should probably head out towards the field. People are going to notice you're gone and we don't need them suspecting you for this," I insisted, making a notion with my hands for him to leave. Stefan nodded, eyes slightly dazed as he looked from my bloody hands to the gory wound on Mr. Tanner's neck.

"Are you..,?"

"Okay? Yeah. This is my job. Now go out there before someone misses you," I said, turning back to Mr. Tanner's body, trying to determine how to set up the scene. Not willing to forget the supposed stash that Stefan has on vervain, however, I called out to him.

"And we will be talking about that supply of vervain you have, mister," and though my words were spoken in a joking matter, I made sure they came across very serious. Stefan sensed this and nodded curtly before turning to leave. I watched his figure disappear around the corner before stripping my ruined gloves off cautiously. I tentatively reached my hand into my bag, memories passing through my brain rapidly as my hand searched for my phone desperately. Head pounding, I felt myself grow sick as my hands finally closed around the rectangular object, heart pounding as I quickly dialed 1 on the keypad.

"Charlotte?"

"Hey Al, um, I need your help. Could you bring me a pair of spare gloves when you get here?"

"Fuck," was all Al said before the line went dead.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTV

"Mind explaining to me what happened here?" Al asked as he finally arrived at the scene, a pair of black gloves held securely in his hands. He rushed over to me when he saw the dead body at my feet and grasped at my shoulders.

"Are you okay? What the hell happened?!" he half yelled as he looked at the bloody pair of gloves on the floor by the body. I shrugged and winced at his loud voice. I reached for the gloves in his hands but was stopped when he shook his hand and carefully put them on my fingers. When he was finished, he pulled me tight against him and tucked my head against his collarbone.

"Maybe coming here was a bad idea," he murmured into my hair. I scoffed and shook my head.

"And staying in London would have been better?" I asked as I pushed myself away to look down at Mr. Tanner. Al followed my movements and looked around at the body.

"What happened?" he asked again, more calmly. I sighed and rubbed at my face, fingers lingering at my temples as the headache continued its rampage.

"Long story short, Stefan angered his brother Damon who proceeded to savagely attack poor Mr. Tanner over here in retaliation," I explained before gesturing to my knife in next to the man's body, "There's been wanted notices for Jackson Miller, a killer whose signature killing style is by way of slitting the throat. Thus, the large gaping wound coming from our dear teacher performed by yours truly. Also why I needed new gloves. Those ones are fucked," I finished before walking over to the shed Damon had previously been leaning against. I leaned against it as Al examined the evidence, nodding his head before turning his gaze back to me.

"Didn't hold back, did you?" he joked, gesturing towards the wound. I smirked and shrugged my shoulders, choosing not to answer. Grabbing my phone again, I found the time to be half past 8. Groaning I dropped my head into my hands, shaking it slightly.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?" Al asked urgently, dropping to his knees in front of me, replacing my hands with his own as he lifted my head up.

"Caroline's going to kill me," I groaned.

"Who's going to kill you?" Al demanded. I rolled my eyes and pushed his hands off of me, standing up.

"Caroline Forbes. The sheriff's daughter. I was supposed to be heavily involved in the cheerleading stunts today and I just about missed all of them. She is going to kill me and hate me more than she already does," I explained, holding a hand out for Al to grab. He took it and stood beside me, smirking at my explanation.

"I'll tell her mother to tell Caroline to go easy on you then," he joked as he leaned heavily against me. I pushed him off and began to walk in the same direction that Stefan had.

"You better get going. Someone is going to find him and when they do you're going to be the one the sheriff calls," Al looked at the body again before nodding.

"You best get out there too before they start to suspect you're behind these attacks," he said in jest. I rolled my eyes and punched him lightly on the arm before moving to leave.

"As if I would make such a mess," I said seriously. Al merely laughed before walking towards his car, leaving me alone once more. I smiled and turned grim eye to the teacher. Eh, he was an arse anyway. As I turned to walk away, I noticed something very peculiar.

Building 8. License plate with the number 14. Parking slot 22. The, in a sense, coordinates of where Mr. Tanner was killed.

The same numbers Bonnie Bennett swore she kept seeing.

It would seem, that I would be needing to pay Sheila a visit sooner than originally planned.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTV

Matt Donovan ended up being the one to find Mr. Tanner's body. The police showed up and Al used his charm and just a slight twinge of his energy to make the possibility of this being a case related to Jackson Miller extremely plausible. I stood mostly in the back of the crowd as the students, who had been so excited for the game, suddenly were solemnly quiet. Bonnie stood mostly to the front as tears gathered in her hazel eyes. I watched her, curious to see if she would recognize the numbers around the scene and wasn't disappointed when her eyes widened in horror, her breath picking up.

There was no sign of Stefan, Elena, or Caroline, the last of which I was glad for, at the scene so I had assumed they all went home. I tried finding Al in the crowd of police officers but he was nowhere to be seen, something I had expected. I turned back to where Bonnie was standing but found the space empty. I laughed quietly to myself before turning my back to the crowd, ready to walk home alone, again.

Nearly the whole town was down by the school, leaving the town extremely quiet and empty. It was peaceful in its own way. Peaceful until the telltale headache returned with a vengeance and the cooling in my eyes blurred my vision.

"And what are you doing alone, Lottie? I'd have thought you would be more careful in the deep, dark night," Damon tutted, falling in step with me. I glanced up through my lashes before sighing in defeat.

"Now, now that's not the reaction I wanted," Damon pouted turning around and walking backwards, his front facing me. I shook my head and looked back up into his blue eyes.

"I've had a fairly unpleasant night and so, any retorts you think you will be getting from me are nonexistent," I said tiredly, rubbing at my eyes and temples, the wool gloves on my head scratching at the delicate skin around my eyes. Damon followed the movement as he righted himself and walked beside my like a normal, er, vampire.

"Than can I ask you one question?" he asked seriously. I lifted my head from my hands as we stopped in front of my house. I tilted my head back to meet his eyes and noticed that they were hardened in resolve, something I had not expected to see. I nodded my head cautiously as his pupils dilated slightly.

"Who were you calling an idiot? Before I made a buffet out of Mr. Coach?" Damon asked. I frowned and recalled when I had said that before looking back up at the vampire in front of me.

"Stefan, of course. What kind of idiot do you have to be to not see he was treading in seriously shallow waters?" I scoffed, still irritated with Stefan about that. No matter how many times I tell him, he never listens. Really, Damon's actions were all Stefan's unwilling doing. Not to say that Damon had done no wrong, he was the one to kill the people he did. But, one had to wonder about the motive…

"And besides. What he was saying was completely wrong. I might not know about what happened to you two a hundred or so years ago, but it runs much, much deeper than just the love of some girl," I explained, watching his eyes darken slightly. I quickly moved towards the entrance to my house before he could get any ideas on how to hurt me in retaliation. Damon followed me with his gaze before blurring to where I stood, nearly standing on me due to his height. His eyes seemed to scan my face, counting every lilac scar and memorizing every vein visible on my eyelids before he back off slightly, reaching a hand up to pat at my head, smooth my hair back through to the ponytail.

"You know, I really think we would make a great duo, don't you?" he asked randomly before turning to walk back towards the street. I furrowed my brows in confusion. Damon wasn't the type to have a "sidekick" of sorts, not that I would act as a sidekick in any way, shape or form.

"And how exactly would I benefit by helping you?" I asked, amused. Damon smirked and his crystal eyes glowed in the dark.

"Why, the pleasure of my company of course. And the ability to make your job very, very easy," he said, his tone deepening towards the end. He walked down the street, the lone lamp on the sidewalk making his figure nothing more than a black silhouette.

"Think about, Lottie. Remember, I still have to collect that favor you owe me for earlier," he finished before his figure suddenly disappeared. I groaned and turned back to the door, unlocking it before entering the dark house. I closed the door and leaned against it, falling down to sit against it in exhaustion. Reaching for my necklace, my hand was shocked away as the leaking energy burned it. I tilted my head back against the wood door and closed my eyes as the ever growing headache continued. Gasping, I pulled my body up and towards the couch before collapsing into it, passing out as the pain, for now disappeared.

Honestly, all I wanted was a relaxing night as a normal teenager.

TVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTVDTV

…..yeah so it's been quite awhile. No excuse really. I just haven't had the time to come back to this until school finished. I graduate Wednesday so after that I'm pretty confident in my ability to update this story better. Of course with college coming up, I'll be attending George Mason University, things are going to be crazy hectic but that's life right? Thank you so much for the follows, the favorites and the reviews. They were always nice to see when I was stressed with school and work . Until next time. (Also, this outfit is up on polyvore for anyone curious). 


End file.
